In Athena of S.C., LLC v. Macri, No. E2016-00224-COA-R3-CV (Tenn. Ct. App. Oct. 14, 2016), the Court of Appeals affirmed the dismissal of a Tennessee legal malpractice claim on the basis that the claim was barred by the one-year statute of limitations. In the underlying matter, plaintiffs had purchased promissory…
Articles Posted in Legal Malpractice
Tennessee Legal Malpractice Statute of Limitations
In a recent legal malpractice case, the Tennessee Court of Appeals held that the one-year statute of limitations had run and that the case should accordingly be dismissed in total. In Story v. Bunstein, No. E2015-02211-COA-R3-CV (Tenn. Ct. App. June 9, 2016), plaintiffs had previously been represented by defendant lawyers…
Legal Malpractice – Statute of Limitations – Discovery Rule
In Credential Leasing Corp. of Tenn., Inc. v. White, No. E2015-01129-COA-R3-CV (Tenn. Ct. App. May 17, 2016), plaintiff lender brought various claims against defendant lawyer, including claims for professional negligence and fraudulent misrepresentation, related to the drafting of a deed of trust. Defendant attorney prepared a 2010 deed of trust…
Summary Judgment Reversed in Legal Malpractice Case
In Roberts v. Ray, No. E2015-01522-COA-R3-CV (Tenn. Ct. App. April 13, 2016), the Court of Appeals reversed summary judgment on a legal malpractice claim, finding that there were genuine issues of material fact in the case. Plaintiff’s attorney (now the defendant in a legal malpractice claim) drafted a prenuptial agreement…
Reassurances that Lawyer Would Fix Mistake Do Not Toll Legal Malpractice Statute of Limitations in Tennessee
The statute of limitations for legal malpractice claims in Tennessee is one year from the date the action accrues. Tenn. Code Ann. § 28-3-104(a)(2). The “discovery rule” determines when the action accrues in most legal malpractice cases. Tennessee’s discovery rule says that a plaintiff’s time limit to file suit does…
Lawyers Without Legal Malpractice Insurance
I am fortunate to receive many calls on many types of cases, some of which fall outside of my normal practice area. i decided I would seek out a lawyer to whom I could associate on a particular type of case – this lawyer enjoyed a good reputation on cases…
Plaintiff’s Attorney in Wrongful Death Case Owed Duty to Minor Beneficiaries
The defendant and his law firm was hired to bring a wrongful death action for decendent’s (Anderson’s) estate and to assert loss of consortium action by Anderson’s wife. The case was dismissed, arguably after the experts in the case were thrown out after a Daubert challenge.. Lawyer did not timely…
Can An Insurance Company Bring a Legal Malpractice Claim Against Defense Counsel It Hired For Its Insured?
I serve on the Standards Committee of the National Board of Trial Advocacy, a division of the National Board of Legal Specialty Certification. Our members have a duty to report legal malpractice claims that have been filed against them, so from time to time I see claims filed by liability…
Kentucky Lawyers Sued By Client
A plaintiff in a car accident lawsuit has become a legal malpractice plaintiff. Sharon Langford has sued a law firm with office in Kentucky and Florida and made some very serious allegations. Basically, she was alleged to seek health care for her injuries from a specific provider and that…
Legal Malpractice Case – An Oldie But a Goodie
Legal Malpractice Law Review brought to my attention an interesting legal malpractice case from 1979 in Pennsylvania, Schenkel v. Monheit, 226 Pa. Super. 396 (Pa. Super. Ct. 1979). The plaintiff’s lawyer in the underlying case (and now the defendant) failed to sue the original defendant’s employer in an auto accident case. Plaintiff…