It’s rare, but here is a case in which plaintiff was granted summary judgment against the target attorney in a legal malpractice case. in Anne Koplick Designs, Inc. v Lite ; 010 NY Slip Op 06356
Decided on August 10, 2010 ; Appellate Division, Second Department . In its short, but stark decision the Second
Legal Malpractice News
When Is it Too Early to Sue in Legal Malpractice?
It may be too late to sue, which implicates the statute of limitations. Then again, it may be too early to sue, Why would one bring an action too soon? The answer is that sometimes time could run out before events can support a legal malpractice case which will mature later. Here is an example…
Multiple Representation and Legal Malpractice
This case Tavarez v Hill ;2009 NY Slip Op 29002 ;Decided on January 5, 2009 ;Supreme Court, Bronx County ;Victor, J. recently partially decided covers two areas. The first area is disqualification of counsel because of multiple representation of four car accident victims, all in one car. "Should the court, sua sponte, stay the…
Guardians, Attorneys and Legal Malpractice
Guardians, Referees and other court appointees have a qualified immunity to suit. At a bare minimum, permission from the court is required before bringing suit. Here in Cangro v. Solomon Justice Edmead of Supreme Court, New York County sets forth the rules in three areas: suing guardians, privity and an eventual requirement that permission…
Collateral Estoppel in Legal Malpractice
One may lose the right to bring a legal malpractice case based on earlier attorney fee dispute resolution. In this case , Margrabe v. Sexter & Warmflash, PC, 07-CV-2798, District Judge Kenneth M. Karas, SDNY, we see just how the process operates. Plaintiff retains attorneys to represent her in a shareholder derivative matter. Attorneys were…
Legal Malpractice is A Case Within a Case
As yet another example of why legal malpractice is a difficult discipline, here is a case in which there was a failure to file a counterclaim, The legal malpractice case ends in dismissal, because the Appellate Division determines that the counterclaim, even if made would have failed. Ginther v Rosenhoch ;2008 NY Slip Op 10292…
The Difference Between Breach of Fiduciary Duty and Legal Malpractice
Gina Passarella of the Legal Intelligenser reports on a case from Philadelphia that illustrates the difference between Breach of Fiduciary Duty and Legal Malpractice involving Cravath, Swaine & Moore. and Airgas, inc.
From the article: ‘U.S. District Court Judge Eduardo C. Robreno ruled that under Pennsylvania law, Airgas sufficiently showed that Cravath had a fiduciary duty…
Why Is Legal Malpractice Different for Criminals?
Legal Malpractice rules are either legislated or court created. There is no general underpinning such as an amendment to the Constitution, nor is there a basic common law history (with the very notable exception of the area of attorney deceit, which is as old as the Magna Carta.) But as we have commented before, legal…
A Curious Intertwining of Legal Malpractice and Bankruptcy
BAKER, -v.- CHARLES SIMPSON, WINDELS MARX LANE & MITTENDORF, LLP is the story of a Chapter 7 petitioner whose case was converted into a Chapter 11 proceeding. He had counsel appointed, who then represented him until the end of the proceedings. The proceedings ended badly, with plaintiff Baker alleging "that: (1) On the advice of…
Lawyer’s Fund and Legal Malpractice
Cases in which attorneys steal money rather than lose money [or commit blunders which lose otherwise meritorious cases] are in the jurisdiction of the New York Lawyers’ Fund for Client Protection. This fund fills an important role, and covers areas which will not be susceptible to a legal malpractice case. Malpractice Insurance carriers will not…