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Legal Malpractice

Illinois Legal Malpractice Blog

Court decisions and lawsuits dealing with legal malpractice, with an Illinois focus.
By Coleman Law Firm

Post Frequency: 0.4/day

Last Entry: March 06, 2009 at 12:23:25

Justice Sandra Day O'Connor Launches New Civics Web-Site for Kids!

Posted on March 06, 2009
I happened to stumble across a great new website that all parents, students, teachers and grandparents should know about - so spread the word! Justice Sandra Day O'Connor recently launched www.ourcourts.org which is a site containing a wealth of knowledge for children on American Civics and the Judicial Branch...

Blackwater Legal Malpractice Suit Dismissed

Posted on January 07, 2009
Articles on Law.com and MichiganMessenger.com detail how a $30 million legal malpractice suit brought against the Law Firm Wiley Rein by Blackwater Security Consulting has been dismissed for a second time. In 2004, a wrongful death suit was filed against Blackwater by the families of four former employees who were brutally killed in Fallujah, Iraq...

Will the Economic Downturn Cause an Increase in Legal Malpractice Claims?

Posted on January 07, 2009
I just read an interesting article, here, on InjuryBoard.com that claims that experts predict legal malpractice claims are going to rise in 2009. One of the main theories for the predicted increase is that lawyers who start to get squeezed economically are more likely to take on work outside their core practice area that they, in better economic times, would have referred out to a lawyer with more specialized knowledge.

"Hell Hath No Fury Like a Woman Scorned"

Posted on October 27, 2008
Who would have thought that a legal malpractice case could revolve around William Congreve's famous quote, "Heaven has no rage like love to hatred turned, Nor hell a fury like a woman scorned" ( from The Mourning Bride) - Wildey v...

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In a "Defense-Type" Legal Malpractice Case, Actual Damages Can be Shown by the Entry of a Judgment Adverse to the Client, Even if the Judgment has Not Been Paid

Posted on July 21, 2008
I have been out of the blogging world for a while and have a stack of interesting cases and articles piled up on my desk to write about. Today, I am going to ease back into things and highlight an Illinois Appellate case that came down earlier this year that lays out what needs to be alleged in a legal malpractice complaint to fulfill the element of "actual damages...

Court Lambastes Lawyers in their Handling of a Jamaican Immigrant's Case

Posted on February 22, 2008
The ABA Journal reported yesterday on a New York based 2nd Circuit Court of Appeals decision that came down this week reopening the case of an immigrant who was scheduled for deportation and jailed for nine months (forcing his wife and child into a homeless shelter) when his initial counsel 'failed spectacularly' by misinforming him about the date of a scheduled hearing resulting is his failure to appear and then failing to tell him of either the missed hearing or the deportation order (citing The Associated Press)...

Failure to List Legal Malpractice Lawsuit as an Asset In a Bankruptcy Leads to Dismissal of Lawsuit

Posted on January 28, 2008
In a recent article in the Chicago Daily Law Bulletin a decision by the Illinois Appellate Court was discussed dealing with the failure to schedule legal malpractice claims in a bankruptcy proceeding (Unfortunately, the case itself is unpublished, Dawn and Donald Patrzykont v...

Legal Malpractice Carrier Takes a Hard Line in New Jersey Case

Posted on November 19, 2007
An Article posted today on Law.com written by Charles Toutant discusses an interesting and potentially huge declaratory judgment suit filed last week in federal court in Trenton, New Jersey. A legal malpractice insurance carrier is sending up red flags on the level of client grumbling that puts a lawyer on notice of a claim that the lawyer must then report to the insurance carrier...

Illinois Appellate Court Holds Client's Settlement of Underlying Case Does Not Preclude Malpractice Claim

Posted on October 29, 2007
An Illinois appellate court recently held that under the doctrine of judicial estoppel, a client's statement in court that she understood and agreed to the terms of her divorce settlement did not bar the client from bringing a legal malpractice claim alleging her attorney failed to conduct adequate discovery and gave her negligent advice...

Illinois Appellate Court Holds That Defendant's Solvency is Required Element of Plaintiff's Legal Malpractice Action

Posted on October 15, 2007
To plead a cause of action for legal malpractice, a plaintiff must allege facts that support a finding that (1) an attorney owed the plaintiff at duty arising from the attorney-client relationship, (2) the attorney breached that duty, and (3) the attorney's breach proximately caused the plaintiff to sustain damages...

The Illinois Apellate Court Clarifies When the Two-Year Statute of Limitations Period Begins to Run in Legal Malpractice Cases

Posted on July 18, 2007
A recent Illinois Appellate decision (Warnock v. Karm Winand & Patterson) stemming from a failed real estate sale addresses the issue of when the two-year statute of limitations begins to run in a legal malpractice case - is it 1) when the underlying action is first filed and the client is put on notice that his attorney(s) may have been negligent or 2) when a decision is rendered in the underlying action resulting in a monetary loss for the client due to the lawyer's negligence...

Illinois Attorney General Sued for Malpractice

Posted on May 07, 2007
An article in the Chicago Daily Law Bulletin (subscrip. required), reported on a legal malpractice lawsuit that was recently filed against Illinois Attorney General, Lisa Madigan and two of her assistants by state police colonel Diane Carper alleging that the attorneys failed to adequately represent the officer in a federal case...

When Legal Startegy & Ethics Conflict

Posted on April 27, 2007
Yesterday, Carolyn Elefant had an interesting posting entitled: "Who's More Ethical: the Lawyer With the Client Who Lied or the Lawyer Who Withheld Evidence of the Lie?". The post centers around a medical malpractice case where defense lawyers obtained video evidence that the plaintiff who was claiming to be paralyzed from a doctor's negligence could walk...

Insurer Able To Proceed With Legal Malpratice Lawsuit

Posted on April 18, 2007
An Illinois appellate court recently reversed a circuit court entry of summary judgment in favor of a lawyer and his Park Ridge law firm, holding that an insurance company can proceed with its legal malpractice lawsuit against the law firm that represented the insurer in connection with a coverage dispute...

Puncturing of Large Inflatable Rat Leads to Defamation Suit Against an Attorney

Posted on March 26, 2007
Not only did I find the law interesting in this case, but it also caught my attention because lately as I have been heading out for lunch with my colleagues in downtown Chicago we have spotted inflatable rats (like the one at issue in the case) being displayed and wondered what the purpose of them was - now I know...

Lawyer Indicted for Stealing Millions from Clients and Law Firm

Posted on March 23, 2007
The ABA Journal reported today about a New Orleans lawyer, James G. Perdigao, who was recently indicted for stealing tens of millions of dollars from clients and his former law firm between 1991 and 2004 - the 59 count indictment includes a $30 million money laundering forfeiture if convicted...

Coke Punks In-House Counsel

Posted on March 23, 2007
Check out this comical video clip from Overlawyered, that shows a marketing campaign developed by Coca-Cola where the company pranked its own in-house counsel by sending actors portraying brand manager employees to attorneys to inquire if they could sue Coke Zero for tasting so much like Coca-Cola...

Legal Malpractice Conference Held in Chicago

Posted on March 12, 2007
Last week was the Legal Malpractice & Risk Management Conference in Chicago. Bob Coleman, the Principal and Founder of my firm, was one of the guest speakers on a panel discussing Successor Entities (mergers v. sale of assets) and issues that arise regarding "who is the client?" There were several interesting and informative discussions on legal malpractice - I have many new ideas of things to cover in the blog...

Indiana Legal Malpractice Case Addresses The Issue of Equitable Subrogation

Posted on February 21, 2007
Yesterday, the New York Legal Malpractice Blog had an interesting post about a decision from the Court of Appeals of Indiana called Querrey & Harrow Ltd., et al.v. Transcontinental Insurance Co. which addresses the question, "can an excess insurer bring a legal malpractice action against an insureds attorneys?" The decision addresses issues of equitable subrogation and attorney-client privilege (to name a few), looking at the law in Indiana and other jurisdictions (including Illinois)...

Fee Sharing Dispute Decided by Illinois Appellate Court

Posted on February 14, 2007
Yesterday's Chicago Daily Law Bulletin reported on an Illinois Appellate Court decision this week that found a fee-splitting agreement between two law firms involving a federal conspiracy lawsuit did not apply to a related legal malpractice case handled by only one of the firms...

Legal Malpractice Suit Addresses Interesting Bankruptcy Issues

Posted on January 15, 2007
Law.com recently reported, here, on an interesting New York legal malpractice case. According to the article, the former partners of defunct New York law firm, Hall Dickler - known as a leading advertising law boutique - are facing a legal malpractice suit for failing to advise a company to file bankruptcy earlier than it did...

Related Law Bulletins

$16 Million Jury Award for Heart Attack Death Among Largest Medical Malpractice Verdicts in Connecticut
October 3, 2007 issue of Newsday reports: "BRIDGEPORT, Conn. - A S...

Medical Malpractice: Your Case Is On The Trial Calendar-Can Defense Lawyers Talk to Your Doctor?
Your New York attorney has notified the Court that your case is re...

Should I Sue? Examining the Complex Question and the Role Apologies Play in Medical Malpractice Lawsuits
WBUR examines the medical apologies issue: On WBUR, a Boston NPR s...

Medical Malpractice - Your Child's Been Diagnosed With Brain Damage and Cerebral Palsy
You're in labor. Your due date is tomorrow. Your contractions are ...

Massachusetts: Medical Malpractice Statute of Repose Doesn't Apply to Fraud Claim
Massachusetts Lawyers Weekly reports that a lawsuit against a doct...