The Most Common Types of Legal Malpractice
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You trusted your lawyer with your most intimate and private secrets. You put your life and your future in their hands. When a lawyer takes on your case, they make a pledge to put their skill and competence at your disposal, to always work in your best interests, and to follow the law and the ethics rules of their profession. If your lawyer has failed to do their job professionally, competently, and ethically, it can have devastating consequences for your case. This in turn can lead to the ruin of your life. You need not resign yourself to this fate. You can seek compensation for legal malpractice. Legal malpractice lawyers, like the Kassab Law Firm handle such cases. If you believe that your case has been mishandled by your attorney, you should contact the Kassab Law Firm today.
A Discovery That May Shock You
While it is popular to satirize the ruthlessness and shiftiness of lawyers, the plain fact is that they are employed to be an advocate for their clients. This sometimes puts them in the position of making arguments and taking positions that are not popular. In America, everyone is entitled to adequate counsel. When this does not happen, when you discover your lawyer does not have the experience, expertise, or competence to do the job, it may shock you. It may leave you with a feeling of helplessness. The best way to get over this emotion and get the justice you deserve is to hire a legal malpractice attorney.
Here are some of the most common types of legal malpractice:
1. Failure to know and apply the law
The field of law is so wide and varied that it is impossible for any one attorney to be master of it all. That is why lawyers must specialize in certain branches and sub-fields of the law; and even then, they need to keep themselves constantly updated on new developments and legislation in their field of expertise. The American Bar Association estimates that over 10% if malpractice cases consist of lawyers who failed to properly know and apply the law.
2. Inadequate investigation
Lawyers must employ investigators to gather all the facts that have a bearing on their clients’ cases. They must also launch robust discovery probes and petitions. Sloppy investigations and discovery account for 8.8% of legal malpractice cases.
3. Failure to meet deadlines
Meeting court-mandated deadlines may seem like the simplest thing to get right, but many lawyers get it wrong. They fail to calendar their deadlines and to submit vital documents, which then puts the interests of their client in jeopardy.
4. Failure to get consent
Lawyers work for their clients, not the other way around. Your lawyer should present to you all offers for case resolution and the risks involved with each one. It is up to you to make the final decision. Your lawyer does not get to select a course of action that is most convenient for them; they must do as you wish. Failure to obtain client consent resulted in over two thousand legal malpractice claims last year.
5. Conflict of interest
If a victory for another one of your lawyer’s clients will infringe your rights or interests, then your lawyer must drop them or you; they cannot represent you both. This is a conflict of interest.
Suing the One Person You Trusted
If your situation was so desperate and precarious that your lawyer became the only person you could lean on and trust, it can be hard to acknowledge that they betrayed this trust and failed in their professional obligation to you. Texas legal malpractice attorneys at the Kassab Law Firm deal with this type of situation all the time. The lawyers at the Kassab Law Firm will show compassion when representing you in litigation against your former attorney.
If your lawyer has mishandled your case, then you should speak to the legal malpractice attorneys at the Kassab Law Firm.