Courts routinely scrutinize the actions of plaintiffs in legal malpractice cases, and we sometimes wonder whether their behavior receives a higher level of scrutiny than do other plaintiffs. In G & M Realty, L.P. v Masyr 2012 NY Slip Op 05257 Decided on June 28, 2012 Appellate Division, First Department the Court finds that
Andrew Lavoott Bluestone
Andrew Lavoott Bluestone has been an attorney for 40 years, with a career that spans criminal prosecution, civil litigation and appellate litigation. Mr. Bluestone became an Assistant District Attorney in Kings County in 1978, entered private practice in 1984 and in 1989 opened his private law office and took his first legal malpractice case.
Since 1989, Bluestone has become a leader in the New York Plaintiff’s Legal Malpractice bar, handling a wide array of plaintiff’s legal malpractice cases arising from catastrophic personal injury, contracts, patents, commercial litigation, securities, matrimonial and custody issues, medical malpractice, insurance, product liability, real estate, landlord-tenant, foreclosures and has defended attorneys in a limited number of legal malpractice cases.
Bluestone also took an academic role in field, publishing the New York Attorney Malpractice Report from 2002-2004. He started the “New York Attorney Malpractice Blog” in 2004, where he has published more than 4500 entries.
Mr. Bluestone has written 38 scholarly peer-reviewed articles concerning legal malpractice, many in the Outside Counsel column of the New York Law Journal. He has appeared as an Expert witness in multiple legal malpractice litigations.
Mr. Bluestone is an adjunct professor of law at St. John’s University College of Law, teaching Legal Malpractice. Mr. Bluestone has argued legal malpractice cases in the Second Circuit, in the New York State Court of Appeals, each of the four New York Appellate Divisions, in all four of the U.S. District Courts of New York and in Supreme Courts all over the state. He has also been admitted pro haec vice in the states of Connecticut, New Jersey and Florida and was formally admitted to the US District Court of Connecticut and to its Bankruptcy Court all for legal malpractice matters. He has been retained by U.S. Trustees in legal malpractice cases from Bankruptcy Courts, and has represented municipalities, insurance companies, hedge funds, communications companies and international manufacturing firms. Mr. Bluestone regularly lectures in CLEs on legal malpractice.
Based upon his professional experience Bluestone was named a Diplomate and was Board Certified by the American Board of Professional Liability Attorneys in 2008 in Legal Malpractice. He remains Board Certified. He was admitted to The Best Lawyers in America from 2012-2019. He has been featured in Who’s Who in Law since 1993.
In the last years, Mr. Bluestone has been featured for two particularly noteworthy legal malpractice cases. The first was a settlement of an $11.9 million dollar default legal malpractice case of Yeo v. Kasowitz, Benson, Torres & Friedman which was reported in the NYLJ on August 15, 2016. Most recently, Mr. Bluestone obtained a rare plaintiff’s verdict in a legal malpractice case on behalf of the City of White Plains v. Joseph Maria, reported in the NYLJ on February 14, 2017. It was the sole legal malpractice jury verdict in the State of New York for 2017.
Bluestone has been at the forefront of the development of legal malpractice principles and has contributed case law decisions, writing and lecturing which have been recognized by his peers. He is regularly mentioned in academic writing, and his past cases are often cited in current legal malpractice decisions. He is recognized for his ample writings on Judiciary Law § 487, a 850 year old statute deriving from England which relates to attorney deceit.
Legal Malpractice and the Fallout from Dombrowski
The rule has always been that a plaintiff must be able to allege actual innocense (reversal, acquittal or exonoeration) in order to sue a criminal defense attorney for legal malpractice. Recently, in Dombrowsky v. Bulson, 2012 NY Slip Op 04203 (2012) the Court of Appeals trimmed possible bases for damages solely to economic damages. …
Flip Sales, Fraud and Legal Malpractice Case
In Clerico v Pollak 2012 NY Slip Op 51178(U) Decided on June 26, 2012 Supreme Court, Queens County McDonald, J. we see the complicated aftermath of a flip sale. As far as we can gather Plaintiffs were offered a deal in which they would sell their real property to A, who would then turn…
A Mixed Victory for Plaintiff in this Legal Malpractice Case
When does a corporation have capacity to sue for legal malpractice? What must a defendant plead in order to assert affirmative defenses? How many proceedings will take place in this case before issue is joined?
Moran Enters., Inc. v Hurst 2012 NY Slip Op 04980 Decided on June 20, 2012 Appellate Division, Second Department…
Big Lawfirms. Big Cases, Big Legal Malpractice Headaches
In 2002 attorneys are retained to handle a legal matter relating to a parcel of property known as 350 Shore Road, Long Beach, New York by Xander. The clients wanted to contest easement rights over the 350 Shore Road property in favor of their own property at 360 Shore Road. This initial litigation led to…
A Classic Legal Malpractice Case Tried to Verdict
It started from a simple commercial transaction, and when it was all over, more than 9 years later, the law firm had lost its legal malpractice case and had to pay a very significant amount of money as a judgment. Where did they go wrong?
Lovino, Inc. v Lavallee Law Offs. 2012 NY Slip…
Are too Many Legal Malpractice Cases Dismissed?
We’ve noted our anecdotal belief that more legal malpractice cases are dismissed on CPLR 3211 grounds than in general. We are the first to admit that no statistical study has been done. In the spirit of anecdotal evidence, we look at Harris v Barbera 2012 NY Slip Op 04973
Decided on June 20, 2012  …
When Does the Statute of Limitations Begin to Run in Legal Malpractice?
Its not always easy to say when the last date upon which an attorney renders service to a client, nor when the statute of limitations commences. . is it on the day that a defective security agreement is prepared? is it on the day that the security agreement is given to debtor? In this case…
Changes in the The Cove Cafe and Legal Malpractice
Last fall we wrote about the Cove Cafe and the legal malpractice case that followed. Attorney was sued when there was a falling out of the partners. Now, on a motion to renew and reargue, before a different judge, there have been some changes. Battaglia v Grillo 2012 NY Slip Op 31588(U)
June 6, 2012 …
Is a Promise to Be Lead Counsel Actionable?
Big corporate client goes to Big white shoe law firm and believes that the Big litigator there will take and handle the case. It does not happen. A lesser light handles the case, and the Big Corporate client is unhappy. Now what?
Matter of Matter of G.K. Las Vegas Ltd. Partnership v Boies Schiller & …