Attorney Bob Sheldon discusses his approach to legal malpractice, which holds other attorneys responsible for their professional behavior. He is one of a handful of attorneys in the state of Connecticut with experience suing attorneys and he often speaks to prospective clients about what is required to bring a lawsuit against an attorney.
I’m probably one of the few attorneys in the state that does legal malpractice work. To me, lawyers are no different than anyone else. We’re human and we can make mistakes. And if we make mistakes, we should be held responsible for our conduct. Just like someone who runs a red light and causes an injury or a doctor who misdiagnoses a case, if a lawyer makes a mistake and it harms someone, they should be held accountable.
We, as lawyers, should not be afraid to take on other lawyers and hold them to a higher standard. And why lawyers don’t do it is beyond me because as a trial lawyer we should be concerned about helping people in all walks of life, not just certain professions.
A number of years ago, the firm had to decide if we would be one of the few law firms in the state of Connecticut to bring claims on behalf of persons who were financially damaged by an attorney’s negligence. We concluded that it would be hypocritical of us to require doctors, motorists, and manufacturers to follow the law, but allow lawyers to break the law and get away with it.
What constitutes legal malpractice? It’s when a lawyer fails to provide legal services that meet the required standard of care, skill and diligence the lawyer owes to the client and as a result causes harm and losses to the client. In my nearly 40-year career, I’ve seen examples of legal malpractice in many different areas of the law.
If you want to discuss a potential case, I’d be happy to sit down and discuss your options with you and what to expect. Please contact me to learn more about how to get started.
