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Appellate Court Affirms $700,000 Judgment Against Lawyer in Malpractice Action, in Part, Because Defendant Failed to File...

Brief Summary - An intermediate appellate court in Illinois held that defendant forfeited appellate review of expert testimony admitted at trial because he failed to file a post-trial motion on the issue. However, the...more

Florida Appellate Court Reverses Summary Judgment for Attorneys Where They Could Have Remedied Prior Counsel's Mistakes and...

Baum v. Becker & Poliakoff, P.A., 47 Fla. L. Weekly D2374 (Fla. 5th DCA November 18, 2022) - Plaintiff sued her attorneys for malpractice, arguing that they failed to correct her previous attorneys' mistakes in order to...more

California Court Affirms Ethical and Statutory Obligation to Warn Opposing Counsel of Intent to Seek Default

Brief Summary - In an unlawful detainer action, the plaintiff obtained a default judgment against the defendant by intentionally not serving the complaint and summons on the defendant's counsel or its registered agent....more

When Aggressive Tactics Cross the Line: Illinois ARDC Suspends Lawyer Accused of Sending "Abusive and Aggressive" E-Mails

An attorney practicing in Illinois, Felipe Nery Gomez (respondent), was suspended from the practice of law for three years as a consequence of sending threatening and harassing e-mails in violation of Rules 4.4(a) and 8.4(d)...more

Illinois Supreme Court Holds Former Client Alleging Legal Malpractice May Recover Punitive Damages Awarded Against it in...

Midwest Sanitary Service, Inc., et al. v. Sandberg, Phoenix & Von Gontard, P.C. et al., 2022 IL 127327 (Sept. 22, 2022) Brief Summary - The Illinois Supreme Court held that defendants' former client can seek to recover...more

Massachusetts Court Applies Litigation Privilege to Dismiss Claims Against Attorney Accused of Fraudulent Activity During Trial

Plaintiffs in the case were creditors of William von Thaden, who was married to Kimberly von Thaden until their divorce in 2017. The defendant, Michael I. Flores (defendant), represented Kimberly in the underlying divorce...more

Pennsylvania Allows Suit Against Attorneys for "Bad Settlements" Where Fraud/Negligence Alleged

The Supreme Court of Pennsylvania considered whether plaintiff's legal malpractice claims against defendants—her former attorneys—were barred under the court's decision in Muhammad v. Strassburger, McKenna, Messer, Shilobod &...more

Plaintiffs' Lack of Diligence Defeats Fraudulent Concealment Claim and Precludes Tolling of Statute of Repose

Brief Summary - Three brothers—Bruce, Brad, and Brian Brandolino (plaintiffs)—held remainder interests in a piece of real property (Property) which their father sold to a bank in 2005. In 2019, plaintiffs sued the...more

Summary Judgment Granted in Defendants' Favor Because There Was No Attorney-Client Relationship Between Plaintiffs And Defendants

Plaintiffs, Jet Leasing Support Services USA, Inc. (Jet Leasing) and Uwa S. Amadasu (collectively "plaintiffs") claimed that a law firm, Curcio Mirzaian Sirot LLC, and firm partner Aristotle G. Mirzaian (collectively...more

Lawyer Unsuccessfully Attempts to Invoke Statute of Limitations Defense in Malpractice Claim Alleging He Missed Statute of...

Plaintiff, Michael Koumjian (plaintiff), claims he was harassed on the job for his ethnicity and fired when he complained to his employer. When he hired an attorney (defendant) to represent him in a lawsuit against his former...more

California Appellate Court Denies Anti-SLAPP Motion and Sanctions Attorney with "Tunnel Vision"

A California appellate court affirmed the trial court's conclusion that a lawyer's anti-SLAPP motion was frivolous because the filing was not an issue of public interest, nor was it litigation activity. He was accordingly...more

In Unusual Ruling, Rhode Island Supreme Court Excuses Statute of Limitations Violation Because of COVID-Related Issues

The Rhode Island Supreme Court held that it would excuse a statute of limitations violation because of the unique circumstances posed by the COVID-19 pandemic. ...more

Third Circuit Affirms Plaintiff Must Establish He Would Have Prevailed in Underlying Case But For Attorneys' Alleged Negligence

Brief Summary - The United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, applying Pennsylvania law, affirmed the summary judgment that the district court granted in defendants' favor on plaintiff's alleged legal...more

California Court: Attorney's Failure to Cite Known Adverse Authority Violated Duty of Candor To Court

Brief Summary - A California appellate court held that it is a violation of the duty of candor for an attorney to prosecute an appeal while failing to cite known authority that the court has no jurisdiction to entertain...more

When Aggressive Settlement Tactics Go Too Far: California Appellate Court Holds Counsel's Threat to Reveal Opponent's Alleged...

Cross-Complainants/Appellants, Falcon Brands, Inc. and Coastal Harvest II, LLC (Falcon), claimed that Cross-Defendants/Respondents, attorney Amy Mousavi and her law firm, Mousavi & Lee, LLP (Mousavi), engaged in extortion and...more

Illinois Supreme Court Applies Adverse Judgment Rule, Rejects Statute of Limitations Defense in Legal Malpractice Claim

The Illinois Supreme Court held that hiring new counsel and incurring legal fees did not, by itself, trigger the two-year statute of limitations to file a legal malpractice action (735 ILCS 5/13-214.3(b)) because plaintiffs...more

Defendant’s Due Process Rights Violated When Counsel’s Remote Technology Prevented Meaningful Participation in Trial

In a case of first impression, the Texas Court of Appeals held that a party's due process rights were violated where, shortly before trial, (1) its lead counsel was ordered by his physician not to appear in person for trial...more

Illinois Appellate Court Reverses Summary Judgment For Defendants On Plaintiffs' Malpractice Claims Stemming From $2.8 Million...

An Illinois appellate court held that the trial court improperly granted summary judgment in defendants' favor based on the six-year statute of repose governing legal malpractice actions and the five-year statute of repose...more

Eleventh Circuit Finds Attorneys Owed No Duty to be Clairvoyant on Unsettled Law

On October 7, 2021, the United States Court of Appeals for the Eleventh Circuit affirmed summary judgment in favor of defendant law firm. The court held the attorneys owed no duty to advise the client to cease an activity...more

Marijuana Company's Legal Malpractice Claim Goes Up in Smoke

An Arizona appellate court held that summary judgment was appropriate in a legal malpractice action brought by a medical marijuana company for failure to timely pursue a petition for judicial review where plaintiffs could not...more

Illinois Appellate Court Affirms Summary Judgment For Defendant in Legal Malpractice Action Based on No Duty and No Causation

An Illinois appellate court held that: (1) plaintiffs' motion to amend their complaint was properly denied where the six-year statute of repose (735 ILCS 5/13-214.3(c)) barred the proposed amended claims based (in part) on...more

Property Owners Allege Their Own Lawyers Helped Initiate Ruinous Downzoning, Case Dismissed Due to Statute of Limitations

An Illinois appellate court held that plaintiffs' legal malpractice claim, which accrued as soon as his business partners learned of their wrongfully caused injuries, was barred by the two-year statute of limitations. ...more

The California Lawyers Association Ethics Committee Provides Guidance on the Elements of Effective Ethical Screens

On February 11, 2021, the California Lawyers Association Ethics Committee (the Committee) issued Formal Opinion 2021-1, which identified the "Elements of Effective Ethical Screens" that comply with the California Rules of...more

Illinois Appellate Court Holds Legal Malpractice Claim is Barred by Statute of Repose, Rejects Plaintiff's Tolling Argument

Brief Summary An Illinois appellate court held that the statute of repose barred a plaintiff's legal malpractice claim, and that the plaintiff's claim of fraudulent concealment to toll the statute failed. The court also...more

Georgia Malpractice Judgment Reversed Because Trial Court Improperly Allowed Jury to View Complaint With Dismissed Claims

A Georgia appellate court held that plaintiff's nearly $6 million damage award was improper because the trial court permitted the jury to view a copy of the complaint which included allegations and claims that had been...more

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