April 29, 2025

Your lawyer could be liable to you when they commit malpractice, and you can prove that they violated the duties that they owed you. A legal malpractice attorney in California at The Helbraun Law Firm can help you take legal action.

When you hire a lawyer to represent you, they owe you certain duties. not only are they a fiduciary, but they must also follow rules of professional responsibility that govern their profession. There are numerous ways that an attorney can violate those rules, and when they do, you can hold them legally accountable.

Schedule a free initial consultation with the Helbraun Law Firm to learn whether you have a potential cause of action. Our legal malpractice law firm can review your case and help determine your legal options.

Here are five ways that a lawyer could commit malpractice:

Failing to Provide Important Information to the Client

A lawyer is a counselor and an adviser to their client. In addition, they are also a conduit to provide crucial knowledge and information to the client who hired them. There are some instances in which an attorney does not give their client crucial information that would bear upon their ability to make the decisions that they need in their case. For example, in the key California case of Jordache v. Brobeck, Phleger & Harrison, the lawyer failed to inform their client that there was a certain type of coverage available, and the client missed a deadline to file a claim that could potentially have covered their damages. The failure to give key advice or information when necessary could be legal malpractice.

Missing Vital Deadlines in a Case

In any case, there are deadlines that a litigant must meet. There may even be deadlines in cases that are not litigated. For example, a court case must be filed prior to the tolling of the statute of limitations. Otherwise, a prospective plaintiff may lose the legal right to sue entirely. Litigants could also be at legal risk if they miss deadlines to file or respond to motions in a case. When a client is represented by counsel, there is simply no excuse to miss a key deadline in the case because the attorney is supposed to be tracking these dates and acting on behalf of their client before they lapse.

Engaging in Conflicts of Interest

A lawyer owes their paramount obligation to their client, both under fiduciary laws and the rules of their profession. They cannot put their own interests ahead of those of the client. A lawyer also cannot put the duties that they owe to other clients ahead of this client. An attorney should typically refrain from accepting engagements where there is a conflict of interest. If they do, they should present a waiver to their client, which fully explains the conflict, and the client must give their permission. If the client suffers damages from a conflict of interest, they could sue for legal malpractice.

Failure to Use Reasonable Care in a Legal Representation

The lawyer owes several duties to their client during the course of the legal representation. Not only should they avoid conflicts of interest, but they must also use reasonable care in their representation of their client. A lawyer may not always obtain the result that the client wants from the representation, but the poor outcome must not be the result of the attorney’s own negligence. For example, if an attorney misses a key case that could impact the potential success or result of their client’s own legal matter, they could be found to have violated their own duty of care.

Acting Without a Client’s Consent

A lawyer often takes action on behalf of their own client. However, anything that a lawyer does for a client should either be with the explicit permission of their client or pursuant to the authority that their client has delegated to them (and any action must be in accordance with the scope of the delegation). In extreme instances, a lawyer may even settle a case without the consent of their client. An example does not even need to go this far to be malpractice – an attorney could take a certain action in a case over the objection of their client, which could be malpractice.

Contact a San Francisco Legal Malpractice Law Firm Today

If you believe that your lawyer has violated the duties that they owe you, speak to a legal malpractice attorney at The Helbraun Law Firm. You can schedule a free initial consultation with a legal malpractice lawyer by visiting our website or by calling us today at (415) 982-4000. If you win your case, you can recover the damages that you suffered due to Legal malpractice.

David M. Helbraun

Attorney David M. Helbraun at the Helbruan Law Firm in San Francisco emphasize litigation and conflict resolution in the areas of legal malpractice, civil rights & police misconduct and insurance & tort litigation.