Litigation is never good for business. It’s one of the things that difficult to deal with, even for the well-experienced lawyers. It’s time-consuming and takes time away from doing other things that would’ve helped you improve your practice. You also need to process documents, hearings, negotiation, and more.
When a client files legal malpractice against you, it can cause damage not only to your finances but also to your reputation. It may also cause you to lose current and future clientele. This is why, if as a lawyer, you’d get sued by your previous for legal malpractice, it’s natural to feel anxious, tired, and pressured.
However, like how a good lawyer should be, you should equip yourself with the adequate knowledge on how to deal with a legal malpractice suit. And to help you, we will give you what to consider if you’ve had legal malpractice advice for your business.
The Effects of a Legal Malpractice Lawsuit on Your Business
You don’t want to get involved in a legal malpractice suit because it causes your business a lot of problems. This is why you should take precautionary measures. Do whatever you need to do to appease your clients, competitors and customers if they’re threatening to sue you, because:
- The cost of a lawsuit is hard to bear. A lot of suits take up lots of time before they end. Even if you’re a lawyer, you still need to hire a lawyer to work with you in figuring things out. You also need to pay for damages that have been caused to the plaintiff and perhaps other court penalties. You’ll lose money in the long run.
- It can damage your practice’s reputation.
Legal malpractice litigation can do significant damage to your reputation as a lawyer, and it can also damage your business and cause you to lose money. Potential clients might think you’re an unreliable legal practitioner because someone has sued you.
- It can destroy your business relationships.
Litigations can damage your business connections. Your relationships with your employees, business partners, and even with other companies that you deal with would be destroyed.
- It can decrease morale.
Getting involved in a legal malpractice suit can affect your morale, as it’s never easy to deal with it. You’ll feel emotionally and mentally pressured while dealing with settlements, hearings, and mediations.
Things That You Should Consider
Although there are steps you can take as a lawyer before legal malpractice litigation, there are always going to be clients that you can’t placate. No matter what you do, they might still proceed to sue. There’s always legal help available for you, as a lawyer, should you need to tackle a lawsuit. It’s essential that you know how to appropriately deal with the situation before things spiral out of control.
- Get a competent and reliable lawyer.
As a lawyer, you already know the characteristics of a good one. Make sure that you hire a lawyer who has extensive experience in dealing with legal malpractice suits. Doing this will ensure that your company is in good hands. Communication is essential when it comes to dealing with litigation, so you should avoid hiring a lawyer who does not accurately communicate with you.
- Discuss everything with your lawyer.
Always talk to your lawyer before you speak with the plaintiff. Never communicate with the aggravated person without your lawyer by your side.
Make sure that you discuss every detail regarding the lawsuit with your lawyer, no matter how small the detail is. It’s also essential that your lawyer or your lawyer’s staff has a copy of every relevant document that you have.
Lastly, make sure that you’re entirely truthful when talking with your lawyer; never cover anything up.
- Sit down and talk with your insurance provider about the litigation.
Litigation can be costly. This is why you should discuss it with your insurance company. Your insurance provider may be able to help you in covering the cost of the suit.
- Watch your words and actions.
Even if you’re a lawyer, there will be times that you may forget how to conduct yourself properly. Always keep your actions and words in check. One false move may result to you aggravating the plaintiff, making things harder for you.
- Before making any decision, talk to your lawyer.
Once the suit has started, there are a lot of decisions that you need to make. And each choice can make things easy or hard for you. This is why you should always consult your lawyer before you decide.
- Always be diligent.
You should be punctual in responding to your lawyer’s requests and queries, as the slower you respond, the more money you’ll have to pay. And you should also take time to study your case, as there might be an angle that you haven’t thought of or a way to placate the situation.
Legal malpractice litigation can be complicated. You may be facing a challenge and wondering what you should do, but this is not the time to worry. Following the tips we have given above, together with the assistance of a reliable lawyer, will enable you to salvage your reputation, prevent more losses, avoid making things harder for you, and hopefully mend your broken relationships.
Timothy Garret
Timothy is a budding law writer who enjoys all aspect of the law industry. He’s currently studying to become a lawyer and is applying his law knowledge into what he writes about. He spends time with his friends and swimming in his spare time.
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