Little Rock Legal Malpractice Lawyers

Fighting for individuals and business in Arkansas when lawyers fail to properly handle your case

Lawyers make mistakes like everyone else. They can’t guarantee that you win your case, but there are certain fundamental steps every lawyer should take depending on the type of case you have. Attorneys shouldn’t jeopardize your claim by failing to file the right actions in the right courts at the right time.

At Bailey & Greer, PLLC, our Little Rock legal malpractice attorneys aren’t afraid to hold other lawyers and law firms accountable when they fail to protect your rights. We aggressively work to show that a lawyer breached his/her duty to protect your claim and that this failure caused you financial damages. We work with legal professionals who are considered among the best in their fields to show that an attorney didn’t take the right steps or took unnecessary actions that competent lawyers should have known how to handle.

Types of legal malpractice claims

Some types of legal errors are common to almost every type of case. Other legal errors are specific to a particular field of practice, such as personal injury law or estate law.

The most common type of legal malpractice is failing to file your claim on time. Arkansas has statutes of limitations for filing personal injury cases, breach of contract cases, and other types of legal claims. The essence of these statutes of limitations is that if the claim is not filed within the proper time limit, then the claim is forever barred.

For example, where the statute of limitations for a car accident case is three years, then you must file your claim within three years from the date of the car accident. If your lawyer fails to file your claim within the three years, he/she may be liable for legal malpractice. To prevail, you must still be able to prove that you would have been successful on the underlying claim. The damages in a legal malpractice claim are the damages you would have earned had the car accident case settled or gone to trial.

Some of the more common types of legal malpractice include:

• Handling a case the lawyer is not qualified to handle/incompetence. For example, lawyers who exclusively do personal injury and then accept a divorce case may be liable for any errors in the divorce case. Lawyers who are new to a field, like divorce, should either refer the case to an experienced divorce lawyer or work together with that lawyer until the lawyer acquires enough experience and skill to properly handle the case.
• Other untimely matters. Not appearing at court hearings, not filing necessary papers with the appropriate courts, and not filing pleadings, motions, briefs, and other documents on time.
• Settling a case without your approval. No matter the type of case, lawyers work for their clients, not the other way around. Attorneys have the general authority to negotiate settlements, but they can’t agree to a settlement without the approval of the client. Lawyers who settle a case without client consent can be liable for the difference between what the case was worth and the amount of the settlement.
• Ethical problems which can result in losing a case. These include conflicts of interest, violations of state disciplinary rules, misuse of client funds, and other forms of legal misconduct.
• Not retaining the right experts for the case at hand. For example, medical malpractice lawyers can’t trust the doctor or hospital that made mistakes to admit those mistakes. The plaintiff’s lawyer needs to employ independent doctors who can verity that the plaintiff’s physicians and health providers failed to meet competent medical standards.
• Inability to handle a case due to personal problems. Lawyers who have drinking problems, drug problems, or emotional problems should turn over your case to qualified legal counsel while they get help for their underlying problems.

Other types of legal malpractice usually depend on the particular specialty or the practice involved.

How a Little Rock legal malpractice lawyer can help

In addition to understanding the standards for some practices, we work with attorneys who are willing to testify that other lawyers failed to comply with appropriate legal standards.

We conduct extensive discovery to confirm what the defendant lawyer should have done and that what the lawyer actually did or didn’t do damaged your legal claim. Since many lawyers are unwilling to settle legal malpractice claims, we’re ready to try each legal claim before a jury of your peers.

Clients trust Bailey & Greer, PLLC, to represent them in Arkansas legal malpractice cases

You trust your lawyer to fully represent your interests and to have the competence to handle your case. Sometimes, it’s clear that the lawyer made a mistake. Oftentimes, you need to review what happened if you lost a case with another law office to determine if a mistake was made. The Little Rock legal malpractice attorneys at Bailey & Greer, PLLC, work aggressively to understand if your prior lawyer failed to protect your interests. If so, we demand full compensation for your financial losses. Our office is just 5 mins walk from Little Rock Zoo by the Park Plaza Mall, to make an appointment, call us at 501-213-1512 or fill out our contact form.