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Mandatory Legal Malpractice Insurance: Exposing Lawyers' Blind Spots, Susan S. Fortney
Mandatory Legal Malpractice Insurance: Exposing Lawyers' Blind Spots, Susan S. Fortney
Susan S. Fortney
The legal landscape for lawyers’ professional liability in the United States is changing. In 2018, Idaho implemented a new rule requiring that lawyers carry legal malpractice insurance. The adoption of the Idaho rule was the first move in forty years by a state to require legal malpractice insurance since Oregon mandated lawyer participation in a malpractice insurance regime. Over the last two years, a few states have considered whether their jurisdictions should join Oregon and Idaho in requiring malpractice insurance for lawyers in private practice. To help inform the discussion, the article examines different positions taken in the debate on …
Fortifying A Law Firm's Ethical Infrastructure: Avoiding Legal Malpractice Claims Based On Conflicts Of Interest, Susan Saab Fortney, Jett Hanna
Fortifying A Law Firm's Ethical Infrastructure: Avoiding Legal Malpractice Claims Based On Conflicts Of Interest, Susan Saab Fortney, Jett Hanna
Susan S. Fortney
This article addresses the prevailing problem of malpractice claims based on conflicts of interest. Part I of this article introduces the topic by underscoring the seriousness of all conflicts of interest and recommending preventative action. Part II describes measures that law firms can take to detect and manage conflicts and analyzes the effect of the firm’s ability to avoid conflicts claims on a firm’s ethical infrastructure. Part III focuses on some of the most common conflicts situations that result in malpractice claims and sanctions. The discussion includes selected conflicts cases that illustrate problems and patterns. Part IV concludes by urging …
Controversial Defenses To Legal Malpractice Claims: Are Attorney-Experts Being Asked To Be Advocates?, David Caudill
Controversial Defenses To Legal Malpractice Claims: Are Attorney-Experts Being Asked To Be Advocates?, David Caudill
David S Caudill
Attorney-experts in legal malpractice litigation are like many other experts. Although easily distinguishable from experts offering science-based testimony, attorney expertise is similar to that of witnesses offering experience-based testimony, and very much like the expertise of a physician in a medical malpractice case. An attorney-expert is, however, somewhat unique among experts in terms of the type of expertise offered, the inherent risk that the expert’s testimony will invade the province of the judge or jury, and, I believe, the risk of over-testifying. First, there is a problem of defining the attorney-expert’s “expertise” to ensure that the expert is not testifying …
A No-Fault Remedy For Legal Malpractice?, Melissa D. Mortazavi
A No-Fault Remedy For Legal Malpractice?, Melissa D. Mortazavi
Melissa Mortazavi
No abstract provided.
A 2010 Update: What Every Entertainment Lawyer Needs To Know - How To Avoid Being The Target Of A Legal Malpractice Claim Or Disciplinary Action, John P. Sahl
John Sahl
There is significant risk today that lawyers will become the target of a disciplinary or legal malpractice action, especially given the complexity of the law and advances in technology that reduce the amount of time that lawyers have to reflect about client matters. This risk is heightened by the increased competition in the bar to deliver legal services in a cost-effective manner, the sophistication of clients who expect competent, efficient and reasonably priced services, and the litigious nature of consumers. The risk is further exacerbated by the ever-changing methods and rules for electronic communication and the storage of information. The …