Grounds for Mal-Practice

[producer88]

I have been represented by the same firm for 7 years, primarily for 3 breach of contract complaints filed by me against former clients.

Case #1: Failure to respond to a frivilous countersuit by defendant in my case resulted in a $65,000 default judgement against me and garnishment of funds. My suit against this client was for $2M+ and was dismissed for reasons unknown, and appealed by my attorney _ appeal was subsequently dismissed due to "Failure to Perfect Appeal".

Case #2: Complaint was reported to me as filed in Sept 2002. Status reports were given to me since that time, and excuses for delay in progress. The defendant died in 2004, and I was told that documents were prepared to "open the estate". I have recently discovered that the complaint was never filed at all.

Case #3: Complaint was reported as filed Oct 6, 2003, I was given a copy of the complaint for review, approval and signature for filing. In Apr 2004, after pressing for status, I was given documentation of filing "First Request for Production of Documents". Subsequent and frequent communications with my attorney were ongoing, and after pressing for lack of progress, I was informed in Jan 2005 that the complaint had never been filed. The claim was for $1.5M. The complaint was then filed. I have recently discovered that my attorney has failed to respond to every motion put forth by the defendant in this case. Motion for Judgment on Dec 5, 2006 was granted on Feb 15, 2007 and Count I of the complaint was dismissed due to no response by Plaintiff. Defendant's Motion for Summary Judgment was filed on Feb 22, 2007 and granted on Apr 18, 2007, resulting in termination of case due to complete lack of response by plaintiff.

On April 19, my attorney met with me and explained that he had failed to respond, the summary judgment had been granted, and he was filing a Motion to Reconsider. He pleaded to allow him the time to grant this motion before we filed a malpractice claim and offered to give us his insurance information. We prefer to pursue this very strong breach of contract case, and allowed filing of the Motion to Reconsider (Federal Court). I have discovered this week, after 6 weeks and no ruling from the court, that he has neglected to attach the appropriate affidavits from himself and from me, thus delaying the proceeding even further.

All of these cases were very strong, with complete and accurate documentation regarding every issue given by me to the attorney. Each were clear and relatively uncomplicated breaches of contract. Upon discovery of these issues, I met with the Sr. partner of the firm and my attorney was fired immediately. In addition to these outlined acts of complete neglect, there are numerous violations of the Rules of Professional Conduct that are documented and provable. Proving, but for the malpractice, that a favorable verdict would have been won or greater damanges recovered, will not be a challenge.

Each of these cases were either lost or never filed at all, due to gross neglect on the part of my attorney. The firm for which he was partner is informing me that malpractice suits are extremely difficult to win, and that I am welcome to file a claim against their insurance carrier, however they prefer that I give them an opportunity to continue my representation, try to salvage this final case by filing the necessary affidavits missing from the Motion to Reconsider, and pursue the case on my behalf.

I have suffered finanical ruin both personally and professionally as a result of the delays in progress for all these cases, let alone the fact that Case #3 was not filed for 2 years after giving it to my attorney, dismissal of Case #1 altogther for lack of response, the garnishment of funds because of default judgment granted for complete lack of response, and the complete lack of filing Case #2.

There is so much more as well, but I am trying to stick to what I know to be indisputable and completely provable negligence in the legal representation of me.

My questions are: Exactly how strong is my case against this firm? Should I obtain a legal malpractice attorney and file a suit, or file an insurance claim directly against the firm's carrier? (I have been told by the Sr. partner this is my option and that the issues cannot be disputed.) Where do I stand the best chance for compensation of damages suffered?

I realize that if the firm is successful in getting the current Motion to Reconsider ruled in my favor, that case may be salvaged. However, I am concerned that losing Count I in the first Motion for Judgment granted will damage my case. That motion cannot be reversed.

I seek advice so that I will know the best course of action to take at this time. There are no legal malpractice attorneys in our immediate area.

It is certainly possible you have a case based on what you say here; you should take a brief description of these events as well as your records to a malpractice attorney and see if the attorney thinks you have a claim; often you need to contact several attorneys to find one to take the case; the review of your case and records is often free and then they will normally take the case on a contingency fee basis if they think you can win; you would pay only if they collect for you. They will also help schedule other existing legal matters.

WLD attorneys could also become directly involved and perhaps find a way to resolve this for you, though in these types of cases they normally do charge a minor basic fee to fully review with you all records etc. -- After that they may take the case on contingency if it is possible/viable. They have over 280 lawyers in the group covering 26 countries and all U.S. states.

Good luck!

[producer88]

Thank you for the advice. What steps would be required to have a World Law Direct attorney involved?

Originally Posted by producer88

Thank you for the advice. What steps would be required to have a World Law Direct attorney involved?

complain to the bar association first.

Can you explain why I would first complain to the Bar? I am trying to ascertain the severity of my case considering the numerous infractions and repeated misrepresentation, along with what amounts to outright fraud and deception. The firm is, of course, trying to convince me that my case would be so difficult to prove (due to the case-within-a-case requirements, although I have a very strong case, and they have yet to even review it) that I should not bother with an insurance claim, but should allow them to try to salvage the current case that has been dismissed due to the summary judgment granted. Clearly the firm is trying to encourage action that is in their best interest. I am trying to determine what action is in my best interest.

What I need to know is: does the severity of the infractions make my case more compelling than the average malpractice suit that usually involves 1 infraction and 1 case, and no fraudulent or deceptive behavior as I have been subjected to. Keep in mind, the firm is not denying this occurred because I have irrefutable proof of these allegations and they immediately fired the attorney responsible. However, I do believe that they remain ultimately responsible, as he was a full partner in the firm.

In what state are you located? My firm is located in Kentucky; however, we co-counsel with attorneys all over the country. Feel free to contact our office. www.PoppeLawFirm.com
Hans

You may also email info@worldlawdirect.com to privately discuss your case; they will have a copy of your post on file.

It seems a number of different people are responding here so consider everybody's input.

The entire firm is liable if and when you do sue. I had a similar situation.

[annjd]

What you have said here is more than malpractice it is also outright fraud.