When you hire a lawyer, you have the right to expect adequate representation. The competence of your lawyer could mean the difference between a successful outcome that protects your rights or interests and one that leaves you without options.
Not every unsuccessful legal outcome is the result of malpractice. In legal cases, there are winners and losers. However, legal malpractice can arise in many different ways. It can include things like conflicts of interest that should have made an attorney decline a case to fraudulent billing practices. Legal malpractice can also simply occur because your lawyer was simply lazy or incompetent. The following are some ways in which your lawyer’s laziness could have led to legal malpractice.
Procrastination
Lawyers need to be proactive and tenacious to achieve positive results. Lawyers have a duty to their clients, and this means that they need to complete thorough investigations and look into all aspects of the law that applies to the case. If your lawyer failed to do this, you could hold them liable for legal malpractice.
Failure to communicate
Your lawyer needs to work with you and make sure that you’re always on the same page. If mistakes have been made because your lawyer was too lazy to communicate with you, this could constitute legal malpractice.
Failure to meet deadlines
Failing to meet the statute of limitations could mean that your lawsuit will be forever banned and that you will never be able to gain the settlement that you deserve. If your lawyer was responsible for missing this deadline, you could take legal action.
If you are disappointed with your lawyer’s performance and think that it may be malpractice, you should consider speaking with someone who can help you better understand your case and your legal options.