Departure, Proximate Cause and Ascertainable Damages are the holy triumvirate of legal malpractice.  Miami Capital, LLC v Hurwitz  2019 NY Slip Op 05332  Decided on July 2, 2019
Appellate Division, First Department illustrates what happens when one or more of these elements are missing, or at best, speculative.

“Defendant’s motion was properly granted because while…

Kislev Partners, LLP v Sidley LLP  2019 NY Slip Op 31850(U)  June 27, 2019 Supreme Court, New York County Docket Number: 152739/2018 Judge: Saliann Scarpulla is an example of a multi-million dollar tax shelter fraud case in which Plaintiffs waited too long to sue.

“Plaintiffs claim that, in late 2002, they identified a potential real…

Urias v Daniel P. Buttafuoco & Assoc., PLLC  2019 NY Slip Op 05180 Decided on June 26, 2019 Appellate Division, Second Department speaks about Judiciary Law § 487 and legal malpractice.  In this summary judgment case, the legal malpractice claims remain in view of opposing experts.  The JL claims are dismissed.

“The plaintiff commenced this…

David A. Kaminsky & Assoc., PC v Brenner  2019 NY Slip Op 51028(U)  Decided on June 24, 2019  Appellate Term, First Department presents an unusual situation.  The Appellate Term recognizes that there is a viable legal malpractice claim, but allows summary judgment on fees to be affirmed.

“We sustain the grant of plaintiff’s motion for…

Legal malpractice is fascinating, in part, because of the wide range of underlying disputes in which it pops up.  Take for example the Manhattan apartment purchaser.  She wants city views.  She buys into an new development, and does so will prior to completion of the building.  What exactly are city views?  In this case her…

Too speculative is a defense commonly utilized by defendants in legal malpractice settings.  Here, in Birch v Novick & Assoc., P.C.   
2019 NY Slip Op 31712(U) June 14, 2019 Supreme Court, New York County Docket Number: 161445/13, Justice Carol R. Edmead discusses just how speculative they might be.

“Defendants argue that the complaint must be…

We have argued that legal malpractice cases are disproportionately subject to early dismissal. Our theory is that Courts have an inherent and innate bias in favor of attorneys.  There is a plethora of academic and real world experience to support this thesis.  Anecdotally, Baugher v Cullen & Dykman, LLP  2019 NY Slip Op 04904  Decided…

A motion in limine is an advisory pre-trial evidentiary ruling.  A motion for summary judgment is a dispositive motion which seeks to limit a claim or a recovery.  In Mazzurco v Gordon  2019 NY Slip Op 04931  Decided on June 19, 2019  Appellate Division, Second Department the motion in limine succeeded.

“In this action to…