100 years + of collective legal malpractice experience

Some mistakes may not lead to a malpractice claim

by | Jun 2, 2016 | Professional Malpractice |

Although they may not seem like it, attorneys are human, and will make mistakes from time to time. Nevertheless, when an attorney makes a mistake in the course of providing professional advice or service, an injured client may bring a legal malpractice action to recover money damages from the offending lawyer.

However, in order to prevail in such a lawsuit, a person seeking damages must prove causation.  In other words, the client must show that but for the attorney’s negligence, he or she would have prevailed in the action they were involved in, or they would have obtained a better result. 

This is not always easily proven without the assistance of another lawyer, unfortunately. A skilled legal malpractice lawyer has the knowledge and experience to know what can be used to prove that the client would have prevailed absent the attorney’s negligence, that damages were realized and that the client either missed the opportunity to collect such damages, or were assessed them as a result.

Specifically, a professional malpractice attorney can look to the documentation that defined the relationship to determine if the client was properly advised about the risks and benefits of taking a particular course of action, and whether these actions were exercised with the requisite care expected of a practicing attorney.

Legal malpractice cases can be complicated matters. After all, a poorly executed trial plan or negotiation may not be the legal basis for a malpractice claim if the client was advised of his or her options. 

The preceding is not legal advice.