By Andrew Lavoott Bluestone on Posted in Legal Malpractice CasesCentral Amusement Intl. LLC v Lexington Ins. Co. 2018 NY Slip Op 04095 Decided on June 7, 2018 Appellate Division, First Department demonstrates that while permission to amend a pleading should be freely given, its not the same standard for the complaint as it is for the answer. “The motion court did not abuse its discretion in granting… Continue Reading
By Andrew Lavoott Bluestone on Posted in Legal Malpractice CasesNEW CITY: A recurring strain of legal malpractice cases come from matrimonial settlements. More than any other sector of litigation, matrimonial settlements tempt the Courts to avoid a “effectively compelled to settle” analysis in favor of a “I’m satisfied with my attorney” analysis. Imagine if medical malpractice law allowed a surgical patient to be… Continue Reading
By Andrew Lavoott Bluestone on Posted in Legal Malpractice CasesBUFFALO: Experts are important, no? The short answer is “of course!” The longer answer is that they are necessary, absolutely necessary, to plaintiff’s legal malpractice case, as Murray v Lipman 2018 NY Slip Op 04484 Decided on June 15, 2018 Appellate Division, Fourth Department tells us. “Memorandum: Plaintiff commenced this legal malpractice action seeking damages based on defendants’ representation… Continue Reading
By Andrew Lavoott Bluestone on Posted in Legal Malpractice CasesCohen v Sive, Paget & Riesel, P.C. Decided on June 14, 2018 Appellate Division, First Department discusses the question of whether it can be legal malpractice not to search for and attempt to apply insurance for the client. While it may take the case away from counsel, it is of course more beneficial to the client to… Continue Reading
By Andrew Lavoott Bluestone on Posted in Legal Malpractice CasesLegal malpractice, to the surprise of many, is a “no harm-no foul” situation in which not only must a mistake be made, but that mistake must have proximate results. Buongiovanni v Hasin 2018 NY Slip Op 04302 Decided on June 13, 2018 Appellate Division, Second Department is a good example. Did the first attorney make mistakes? Perhaps. Was there… Continue Reading
By Andrew Lavoott Bluestone on Posted in Legal Malpractice CasesIn a matrimonial action, every t must be crossed, and every i dotted. One reason for this is the tremendous emotional and economic issues which often cause irrational conduct. Hell hath no fury…like a losing matrimonial litigant. Walker v Kramer 2018 NY Slip Op 04375 Decided on June 13, 2018 Appellate Division, Second Department is an example of how… Continue Reading
By Andrew Lavoott Bluestone on Posted in Legal Malpractice CasesGrace v. Law is the groundbreaking Court of Appeals case which said, in essence, if you have a meritorious appeal, it must be taken before starting a legal malpractice case. Application of the doctrine has been spotty. Leicht v Meyer, Suozzi, English & Klein, P.C. 2018 NY Slip Op 31161(U) May 17, 2018 Supreme Court, Kings County Docket Number: 505392/17 Judge: Carl… Continue Reading
By Andrew Lavoott Bluestone on Posted in Legal Malpractice CasesWow! Furgang & Adwar, LLP v S.A. Intl., Inc. 2018 NY Slip Op 31151(U) June 6, 2018 Supreme Court, New York County Docket Number: 651192/2014 Judge: Eileen A. Rakower is a primer on the elements of legal malpractice, breach of contract, breach of fiduciary duty, fraud, as well as how to decide a CPLR 3211 motion and when reargument may… Continue Reading
By Andrew Lavoott Bluestone on Posted in Legal Malpractice CasesIn this architectural malpractice case, the Court finds that both malpractice and breach of contract claims remain viable. Yellin v Zimmerman 2018 NY Slip Op 04098 Decided on June 7, 2018 Appellate Division, First Department is a case in which there are sufficient different claims so that both malpractice and breach of contract (for different claims remain in… Continue Reading
By Andrew Lavoott Bluestone on Posted in Legal Malpractice Cases,UncategorizedBUFFALO: After much litigation, this case ends with all causes of action and all counterclaims dismissed. Fee Claims as well as Legal Malpractice Claims are all out and the matter is over. “Memorandum: Plaintiff commenced this action for legal malpractice alleging that defendants acted negligently while representing it in an action involving a construction… Continue Reading
By Andrew Lavoott Bluestone on Posted in Legal Malpractice CasesCANTON, NY: George v Phippen 2018 NY Slip Op 50809(U) Decided on June 5, 2018 Supreme Court, St. Lawrence County Farley, J. is the story of a simple car accident encumbered by a number of missteps. It is a cautionary tale for legal malpractice observers. It all starts with a traffic accident with a municipal dump truck. “On… Continue Reading
By Andrew Lavoott Bluestone on Posted in Legal Malpractice CasesThe statute of limitations is a significant issue for many litigants. There is a delay or lapse time between when a mistake is made and when a legal malpractice case is commenced. In some cases, plaintiffs wait to see whether a mistake can be fixed; sometimes new counsel don’t magically appear right away and there… Continue Reading
By Andrew Lavoott Bluestone on Posted in Legal Malpractice Cases47 Third Residential Invs. LLC v Georges 2018 NY Slip Op 30989(U) May 22, 2018 Supreme Court, New York County Docket Number: 155636/2017 Judge: Robert D. Kalish is the sad story of architectural work, of mistakes, and of tremendous losses, now probably not covered by insurance. “Plaintiff commenced the instant action on June 21, 2017, bye-filing a summons and complaint.… Continue Reading
By Andrew Lavoott Bluestone on Posted in Legal Malpractice CasesALBANY: The Third Department heard oral argument and rendered a decision in Mid-Hudson Val. Fed. Credit Union v Quartararo & Lois, PLLC 2017 NY Slip Op 07916 [155 AD3d 1218] November 9, 2017 Appellate Division, Third Department, holding that in this legal malpractice case there were simply not enough allegations for the court to reach any deterioration at… Continue Reading
By Andrew Lavoott Bluestone on Posted in Legal Malpractice CasesDespite the writing of one of the biggest names in legal circles, Appellant got absolutely nowhere in challenging Judge Kornreich. As she is retiring, this may be one of her last opinions. Shawe v Elting 2018 NY Slip Op 03644 Decided on May 22, 2018 Appellate Division, First Department is an example of how the First Department handles… Continue Reading
By Andrew Lavoott Bluestone on Posted in Legal Malpractice CasesGorbatov v Tsirelman 2017 NY Slip Op 07979 [155 AD3d 836] November 15, 2017 Appellate Division, Second Department is an example of allegations of legal malpractice and Judiciary Law § 487 that the Second Department find sufficient to avoid dismissal under CPLR 3211. “The plaintiff Yevgeny Gorbatov is a licensed acupuncturist and the principal of the six corporate… Continue Reading
By Andrew Lavoott Bluestone on Posted in Legal Malpractice CasesThere are some unique rules and principles in legal malpractice. One of them is that damages have to be in the nature of pecuniary or economic loss. Another is that damages have to be proximately linked to the departure by the attorney. In Iannucci v Kucker & Bruh, LLP 2018 NY Slip Op 03514 Decided on May 16,… Continue Reading
By Andrew Lavoott Bluestone on Posted in Legal Malpractice CasesGlaubach v PricewaterhouseCoopers, LLP 2018 NY Slip Op 30875(U) May 9, 2018 Supreme Court, New York County Docket Number: 157993/2016 Judge: O. Peter Sherwood is something of a nightmare. Plaintiff is the founder, former president and a minority shareholder of a home health services company which is successful. He takes a medical leave and all hell breaks loose. “Numerous… Continue Reading
By Andrew Lavoott Bluestone on Posted in Legal Malpractice CasesSexual misconduct in the educational and more especially the school sport arena has become omnipresent. In Mulligan v Long Is. Fury Volleyball Club 2018 NY Slip Op 28132 Decided on May 1, 2018 Supreme Court, Suffolk County Santorelli, J. we see the effects of decisions by sport officials in handling reports of sexual misconduct between the students and the… Continue Reading
By Andrew Lavoott Bluestone on Posted in Legal Malpractice CasesGarcia v Polsky, Shouldice & Rosen, P.C. 2018 NY Slip Op 03339 Decided on May 9, 2018 Appellate Division, Second Department illustrates a common problem in legal representation. Plaintiff is injured on the job, but may have a personal injury or product liability case as well. Some firms specialize in WC work and don’t really do PI… Continue Reading
By Andrew Lavoott Bluestone on Posted in Legal Malpractice CasesPost-nuptual agreements are highly scrutinized and subject to strict rules. In Barrett v Goldstein 2018 NY Slip Op 03325 Decided on May 8, 2018 Appellate Division, First Department we see a situation in which a post-nuptial agreement that is poor for plaintiff is left in place, and none of the reviewing attorneys can be held responsible. “Plaintiff failed to… Continue Reading
By Andrew Lavoott Bluestone on Posted in Legal Malpractice CasesJustice Scarpula wades into a hotly contested multi-state, multi-party case to discuss, inter alia, Judiciary Law § 487. In SPV-LS LLC v Citron 2018 NY Slip Op 30681(U) April 16, 2018 Supreme Court, New York County Docket Number: 152783/2017 she deftly describes the reach of Judiciary Law § 487 in the first department: “An attorney may be civilly liable for treble damages… Continue Reading
By Andrew Lavoott Bluestone on Posted in Legal Malpractice CasesPlaintiff was fired from a municipal job, but may have had a good defense on appeal. The attorneys withdrew the appeal. Legal Malpractice? Roth v. Ostrer , 2018 NY Slip Op 03218 Decided on May 3, 2018 Appellate Division, First Department suggests that it may well have been a departure from good practice. “Plaintiff alleges that defendants committed… Continue Reading
By Andrew Lavoott Bluestone on Posted in Legal Malpractice CasesIt’s rare for legal malpractice or Judiciary Law § 487 claims to be heard in Surrogate’s Court. Here, in Cooper v Klencner 2018 NY Slip Op 30664(U) April 13, 2018 Surrogate’s Court, New York County Docket Number: 2014-2912/C Judge: Rita M. Mella the fight is over a late-in-life bequest of a large-value liquor company to the long-time bookkeeper and personal assistant.… Continue Reading
