We often wonder whether legal malpractice cases are treated with a type of royal exasperation by judges.  Often the feeling in the air is that legal malpractice cases maybe should not be brought, or that its somewhat shameful to bring one, or that perhaps attorneys are due a little extra consideration.  We wonder if that’s…

Plaintiff and a buddy go to attorney to start a business. Attorney is retained, and eventually Plaintiff is the odd-person out. Attorney’s retainer agreement names only the buddy, and even though attorney sends letters to both Plaintiff and buddy, and creates documents which plaintiff and buddy sign, it is Buddy who comes out with 75%…

In Hirsch v Fink ; 2011 NY Slip Op 07699 ; Decided on November 1, 2011 ; Appellate Division, First Department  we see an unusual situation.  Attorney-client sues his own attorney after an attorney-based litigation for legal malpractice.  In this particular case plaintiff-attorney loses on res judicata and subsequent attorney grounds.
 

Subsequent attorney grounds…

Sometimes its obvious what responsibilities the attorney will take on in a new representation. If it’s a motor vehicle accident, then the attorney is hired to prosecute the personal injury action, up to and including trial. Here, in Hallman v Kantor ;2010 NY Slip Op 03280 ;Decided on April 20, 2010 ;Appellate Division, Second Department…

Legal malpractice cases arise when there has been some departure from good and accepted practice, and a negative result follows.  What happens if a party waits too long to file for some relief?  Generally speaking, they will be precluded, and some attorney will tell the client that there has been a departure.  In Simon v …

What must plaintiff prove in order to be successful in a legal malpractice case?  SOFIA FRANKEL, Plaintiff, – against – BRIAN F. McDONOUGH and DRINKER BIDDLE & REATH LLP, Defendants.10 Civ. 6106 (DAB)UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE SOUTHERN DISTRICT OF NEW YORK; 2011 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 123992;October 24, 2011 shows us that plaintiff must…

The law of legal malpractice is different; it is ubiquitous.  We see this theme again and again in the published cases.  In products liability law, privity was jettisoned years ago.  It remains in legal malpractice law.  In In re: HIRSCH ELECTRIC CO., INC., Debtor. ALLAN B. MENDELSOHN, as Chapter 7 Trustee of the…

Plaintiff buys a house which it says was illegally constructed, and further says that since the seller worked for Oyster Bay, the town overlooked illegal construction and gave a Certificate of Occupancy.  This action, JULIE LAMOTHE and JUSTIN LAMOTHE, Plaintiffs, -against- THE TOWN OF OYSTER BAY, THE TOWN OF OYSTER BAY DEPARTMENT OF PLANNING …