WWTBAM Bored

GRRRR!
My attorney attended the status meeting today.

The realtor's attorney (the person I am suing) has now asked for his fees to be paid by ME because the first attorney non-suited the case. I never wanted the case to be non-suited. It is clear now that my first attorney was not ready to try the case because he never transcribed the depositions nor did he follow thru with any discovery. He non-suited the case and then would not return my calls. So I had to get another attorney (the one that missed the first status hearing because he forgot )

So the other side wants me to pay for all the attorney's time in the case so far. My attorney wants to negotiate and I said my first attorney screwed up so why do I have to pay?
1. Shouldn't the first attorney pay?
2. What should I do?

The answer to this depends on what the law in your state is. In a number of states, defense attorneys can be awarded their fees in the event of frivolous or groundless suits brought against their clients (the wording varies from state to state, and in some cases, awarding fees is mandatory while in others, it's up to the court's discretion). In some states, these fees are recoverable from the other party, while in others, it's the lawyer who filed the pleadings who is responsible.

If you are held responsible, you could have a cause of action against your first attorney for malpractice (or a grievance with the bar depending on the exact circumstances of the case).

I live in Chicago.

The lawsuit isn't frivolous (to me) since the realtor has been found guilty of 3 charges by the Board of Realtors and is being investigated by the State Board of Professional Licensing. She may loose her license over this.

silverscreenselect wrote:If you are held responsible, you could have a cause of action against your first attorney for malpractice (or a grievance with the bar depending on the exact circumstances of the case).

IANAL, but it sounds like this is what you'll have to do, if your state doesn't make the lawyer responsible in the first place. From a generic defendant's POV, without considering the merits of your case, this law letting the defendant ask for their attorney's fee is reasonable. Otherwise, plaintiffs can threaten a lawsuit, force the defendants to pay for a lawyer, then quietly drop the matter.

Of course, to get recompense from your lawyer, you'll need to hire another lawyer.

Costs of Previously-Dismissed Action. If a plaintiff who has once dismissed an action in any court commences an action based upon or including the same claim against the same defendant, the court may make such order for the payment of costs of the action previously dismissed as it may deem proper and may stay the proceedings in the action until the plaintiff has complied with the order.

This is the kinda of rule governing this kind of thing.

themanintheseersuckersuit wrote:

Costs of Previously-Dismissed Action. If a plaintiff who has once dismissed an action in any court commences an action based upon or including the same claim against the same defendant, the court may make such order for the payment of costs of the action previously dismissed as it may deem proper and may stay the proceedings in the action until the plaintiff has complied with the order.

This is the kinda of rule governing this kind of thing.

Does the same rule apply to left hand turners?

But what is the rule when the attorney unfiles the case against the wishes of his client? That is what happened with me. I didn't want the case unfiled, my attorney wasn't ready. For over 4 months I kept calling to find out why he didn't refile the case. Then I had to get a new attorney, who can't read the calendar.

The justice system is unjust.

geoffil wrote:But what is the rule when the attorney unfiles the case against the wishes of his client? That is what happened with me. I didn't want the case unfiled, my attorney wasn't ready. For over 4 months I kept calling to find out why he didn't refile the case. Then I had to get a new attorney, who can't read the calendar.

The justice system is unjust.

Your prior attorney should pay the fees necessary to resist this motion. Do you have a copy of the other side's request? If so, send a copy to the first lawyer with a cover letter that (a) states in no uncertain terms that he dismissed the case without your knowledge or consent, and (b) informs him that you expect him to pay the fees necessary to defend the motion and any award that may be granted against you on that basis. If you don't already have a copy, tell your current lawyer that you want one and you want it today.

The goal is to get him to get his malpractice carrier in the loop -- they will see the potential for fairly sizeable exposure, and should act preemptively to make you happier. --Bob