Legal Malpractice Attorneys Serving Tiverton And Across Rhode Island
When your attorney makes a serious mistake, you can lose money, legal rights or opportunities you cannot get back. The Law Offices of Richard S. Humphrey understands that weight. With over 40 years of experience serving Tiverton clients, we bring the depth of knowledge and focused advocacy your situation demands. We give you the careful attention and clear answers you deserve.
What Is Legal Malpractice?
Legal malpractice is a form of professional negligence. It happens when an attorney’s conduct falls below the level of skill and care that a competent lawyer would provide in the same situation, and the client suffers real harm as a result. In most cases, you must also show you would have won the underlying matter but for the attorney’s error.
These cases are often legally and factually complex. A careful review of the underlying representation and the full scope of the resulting damages is essential to understanding whether a claim exists.
What Can Qualify As Legal Malpractice?
Attorneys can fall short of their professional duties in many ways. Some situations that may give rise to a legal malpractice claim include:
- Missing important filing deadlines or statutes of limitations
- Failing to adequately investigate or prepare a case
- Serious errors in handling litigation
- Failure to follow a client’s lawful instructions
- Conflicts of interest
- Errors involving contracts, settlements or other legal documents
- Failure to properly communicate significant developments or settlement offers
It is important to note that whether specific conduct constitutes malpractice depends on the particular facts of the representation.
Establishing A Legal Malpractice Claim
Evaluating a legal malpractice claim starts with examining the attorney’s professional duties and the specific conduct at issue. We look at whether that conduct fell short of the applicable standard of care.
We also examine the direct connection between the error and your loss. In most cases, we must prove the underlying legal matter would have succeeded but for the attorney’s mistake. This means proving both cases at once. All these make evidence, records and careful analysis crucial.
You Deserve Attorneys Who Take Your Case Seriously
You trusted your attorney with something that mattered, and that trust deserved better. At The Law Offices of Richard S. Humphrey, we make ourselves available seven days a week because we know your situation cannot wait. Call our office at 401-624-6152 or reach out to us online for a free consultation.