Do you believe you have been financially harmed by the negligence of your attorney? We get many calls from prospective clients who believe they have. But, it’s usually not simple to pursue a case against an attorney.
To successfully prosecute a claim of legal malpractice, you must prove:
• An attorney-client relationship existed.
• The attorney breached the duty of care to you.
• The breach caused you financial harm.
• The specific nature and extent of your financial harm.
A legal malpractice prosecution requires you to prove two cases:
First, you must prove the underlying case that you claim was lost or diminished by your attorney’s negligence. For example, if the underlying claim involved injuries you sustained in a traffic collision, but you lost because your attorney failed to provide certain evidence at trial, you must prove that you would have won and how much money you would have received had your attorney provided such key evidence.
Second, you must then prove that failing to provide certain evidence at trial was below the standard of care and not just a matter of judgment.
Bad results are common in litigation. One party or the other is often a disappointed loser. However, that doesn’t necessarily mean legal malpractice was involved. The actions of the attorney must be evaluated to determine whether a bad result for a party was caused by conduct below the standard of care.
We recommend you obtain experienced counsel to determine if the bad result you experienced was malpractice of just a bad result. Talk to James Traut at 714-835-7000 who has successfully prosecuted numerous malpractice cases against attorneys. The consultation is free.