Big Mistake by Lawyers Results in Six Figure Malpractice Settlement

Before Our Involvement

Our client sought the help of a local law firm to protect his legal rights after being wrongfully harassed for years in the workplace. After being told he had a strong case, he hired the law firm with the mistaken belief his legal rights would be protected.

During the litigation process the law firm made one mistake after another. It was even sanctioned $40,000 by the court for failing to comply with certain discovery requirements per the Code of Civil Procedure and Rules of Court. One of the lawyers also failed to serve mandatory documents which resulted in the judge issuing an order preventing the client and the law firm from being able to use any experts at time of trial. As a result, the client was prohibited from presenting, through expert testimony, a majority of his financial losses.

Despite the above, the jury believed that the client was harmed and that the defendant company was responsible. However, based upon the limited damages the jury was allowed to hear, the judgment it ultimately awarded was substantially less than what it should have been.

After Our Involvement

Although we normally do not like to point fingers at other lawyers and sue them for malpractice, in this case it was a no-brainer. When our client came to us and told us what happened, we agreed to investigate and eventually represent him. We filed a legal malpractice lawsuit against his prior lawyers and law firm (the defendants).

As is often the case in these types of matters, a substantial amount of litigation took place. Despite missing the mandatory filing deadline and making other mistakes, the defendants never admitted their mistakes caused any harm to our client. In fact and to the contrary, they argued he should simply be happy with the underlying jury verdict. Our client stuck to his guns and instructed us to keep pushing the case forward to trial. That’s exactly what we did.

We’re happy to report that after much work and effort and prior to a jury trial, we were able to negotiate a full and final settlement for our client. The defendant lawyers and their law firm, through their legal malpractice insurance carrier, eventually paid out a substantial six figure amount to settle this case.

It was our pleasure to help our client eventually find some level of justice. We hope that our efforts have restored his faith in our legal system. On a side note, it’s always disheartening to find out when those we trust, like doctors and lawyers, make careless mistakes that harm others. When this happens, it’s important to remember that you should never be afraid to stand up and hold professionals accountable.