Depositions usually are scheduled and taken without undue turmoil.  Recent changes to the rules concerning the behavior of counsel at depositions have further regulated the proceedings.  Counsel may no longer make talking objections, may not direct their client not to answer, except in rare circumstances, and must be polite.  We’ve not heard of any more…

 What is a question of judgment, what is neglect of a case and what is ignorance of the rules in legal malpractice? Sometimes this is an easy question, other times, slightly more complex. in MCCORD -v.- O’NEILL,; No. 08-3096-cv ; Summary Order; UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE SECOND CIRCUIT;2010 U.S. App. LEXIS 5139…

One aspect of legal malpractice litigation is the failure to follow developments in the law.  Rules change and not keeping up with the changes leads to mistakes, criticism and, later, litigation.  The rules for non-party discovery have undergone some changes over the years, and today’s decision is worth reading.

In Kooper v Kooper ; 2010…

When one reads a decision in a pro-se legal malpractice case strange facts often emerge.  Aponte v. City of New York Department of Corrections et al.,09-2634-cv UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE SECOND CIRCUIT;010 U.S. App. LEXIS 9988 is no exception. 

Plaintiff has been litigating this case, in various forms, for a number…

In Berry v Utica Natl. Ins. Group ;2009 NY Slip Op 06935 ; Appellate Division, Fourth Department we see a situation in which plaintiff was suing Utica National Insurance Group and evidently there was communication between plaintiff and the defendant law firm. "evidence that plaintiff contacted defendant concerning his dispute with Utica National does not establish…

The general rule is that one may not sue an attorney, unless that attorney was working for you. Privity is the concept that the attorney was hired by you, and worked for you. You may not sue the other party’s attorney, no matter how badly you were treated in court by that attorney.

As in…

For those who grew up in the shadow of WWII, the Nazis were a foreboding presence.  The war was over for the parents, and children learned of the war, the atrocities and the aftermath.  For the family in this case, Matter of Jacobsen ;2010 NY Slip Op 50816(U) ;Decided on May 10, 2010
Sur…

We think there is no more difficult case in litigation than a legal malpractice action arising from a medical malpractice case.  The issues of proximity and "but for" multiply and boggle the mind.  One needs a medical expert as well as a legal expert, and while having to prove the causation in a medical malpractice…