Most consumers today are familiar with the concept of medical malpractice. Legal malpractice, though, is something that most people may not have any familiarity with. Understanding legal malpractice is the first step towards identifying and rectifying the situations to which it can lead. Unlike medical malpractice, legal malpractice is a narrowly focused sphere, hinging strictly on the actions of an attorney representing a client.

Legal malpractice results when the negligent actions of an attorney negatively impact a client or their legal case. While legal malpractice is not common, there are quite a few cases of NY legal malpractice. There are quite a few forms that this can take, but the most commonly found are:

Common Negligence: This results when an attorney does not represent a client's case well as any ordinary attorney would. This includes failure to accurately represent a case to the best of an ordinary attorney's abilities and much more, besides. Common negligence can take the form of blatant legal blunder during case representation, missing court dates and failure to file vital paperwork prior to the required deadline. This can also include bounced checks from the attorney to you for settlement purposes, a lack of contact with you and many other forms of malpractice.

Breach of Contract: If your attorney has breached the binding, legal contract that was signed between the two of you, then they are guilty of legal malpractice. This includes failing to provide or produce as stipulated within the contract, as well as blatant disregard for the contents of said contract. Your attorney exists to fulfill their contract with you; this is the nature of your relationship. Any breach of that contract should not be tolerated.

Breach of Fiduciary Duty: When you hire an attorney, they are obligated by law to perform in your best interests. This applies even if your best interests and the best interests of the attorney do not coincide. However, if the attorney decides to operate in their best interests, disregarding their duty, they are guilty of legal malpractice.

Settlement without Your Permission: If your attorney settles your case out of court, without your consent, they can be held accountable for legal malpractice. Regardless of the amount of damages that resulted from the settlement, this is a terrible breach of ethics on the part of your attorney.

If you believe that you have been the victim of legal malpractice, you should contact an experienced malpractice attorney. While it may seem counterintuitive to use another attorney after you have already had one bad experience, this is the only way in which you can recoup your losses. What can you expect to win in a case such as this? You can recoup your damages from losing your case, for one thing. If you can prove that the lawyer's ineptitude caused your case irreparable harm, you can recoup even more than that, at times.

In addition, you can recoup the court costs and lawyer's fees paid to the original lawyer. However, only the most skilled attorney should be selected to represent your case if legal malpractice is determined to have played a role in your previous case.

Trolman, Glaser & Lichtman is New York's number one bilingual personal injury law firm. In practice for more than 30 years, the firm has a reputation for being a winner, a friend, a leader and an advocate. If you need a personal injury lawyer, look no further than Trolman Glaser & Lichtman. http://tgllaw.com/