A Primer on the Texas Bar Disciplinary System | Seana Willing | Texas Appellate Law Podcast
Polsinelli Podcast - Avoiding Professional Liability
Two important principles governing corporate entities are: (1) the entity is legally distinct from its owners; and (2) the entity’s property and assets belong to the entity, not its owners. These themes are...more
Alter ego liability is again the flavor of the day... As previously covered, the alter ego doctrine allows a court to disregard a corporate entity (including LLCs) and hold the individual owners liable for claims against...more
The rise of remote proceedings in response to the COVID-19 pandemic has led federal courts to consider novel issues involving the subpoena of individuals for remotely held depositions and hearings. Last year, three federal...more
In Flores v. Branscomb PC, before her death, the decedent hired counsel to prepare a new will. No. 13-18-00411-CV, 2021 Tex. App. LEXIS 4612 (Tex. App.—Corpus Christi June 10, 2021, no pet. history)....more
An Arizona appellate court held that summary judgment was appropriate in a legal malpractice action brought by a medical marijuana company for failure to timely pursue a petition for judicial review where plaintiffs could not...more
The Florida Supreme Court has given the proverbial “green light” for insurance companies to sue attorneys for negligent representation of an insured. Historically, to bring an action against an attorney for legal malpractice...more
Webb v. Ellis, 2020 Tex. App. LEXIS 3527 (2020) - Brief Summary - A Texas appellate court reversed the trial court's grant of summary judgment in defendants' favor on plaintiffs' legal malpractice claim—which was based on...more
Summary judgment entered in the attorney defendant's favor on grounds of lack of causation in a legal malpractice case was upheld by a Texas court of appeal where plaintiffs' expert's opinions regarding proximate cause were...more
McNellis-Wallace v. Hoffman, et. al., Superior Court of New Jersey, Appellate Division, Docket No. A-1488-19T1 - Brief Summary - A New Jersey appellate court held that a defendant in a malpractice case could not maintain a...more
Scot Vandenberg v. RQM, LLC, 2020 IL App (1st) 190544 - Brief Summary - An Illinois appellate court affirmed the adjudication of a firm's attorney's liens down to zero, where the discharged firm failed to provide any...more
Schaeffer v. Thompson, Ala. Cov. App. LEXIS 25 (2020) - Brief Summary - The Alabama Civil Court of Appeals reversed a trial court's grant of summary judgment in favor of defendant on plaintiffs' legal malpractice claims,...more
Bethel v. Quilling, Selander, Lownds, Winslett & Moser, P.C., (Feb. 21, 2020, No. 18-0595) 2020 Tex. LEXIS 139 - Brief Summary - The Texas Supreme Court held that a claim over an attorney's alleged destruction of evidence...more
Zander v. Carlson, 2019 IL App (1st) 181868, November 21, 2019 - Union-appointed lawyers are immune from malpractice lawsuits filed by formerly represented union members, an Illinois appeals court has affirmed. The First...more
Cahn v. Word, 2020 U.S. App. LEXIS 193 (10th Cir. Jan. 6, 2020) - Brief Summary - The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit held that the four year statute of limitations applicable to legal malpractice actions in...more
Drendall Law Office, P.C. v. Mundia, No. 19A-PL-582, 2019 Ind. App. LEXIS 523 (Ct. App. Dec. 2, 2019) - Brief Summary - The Court of Appeals in Indiana overturned a malpractice jury verdict of $312,000 in favor of a...more
Not long ago, The LLC Jungle posted an article addressing the perils of attorney representation of an LLC with two equal “co-managing members.” See Why Having “Co-Managers” for Your LLC is a Terrible Idea. This post...more
American Inter-Fidelity Exchange v. Hope, et. al., (N.D. Illinois 17 C 7934) - Brief Summary - A federal district court in Illinois held that defendants, who were sued for malpractice after a default judgment was...more
In Milligan v. Salamone, the Greenberg Taurig lawfirm represented the bankrupt company when it sued a president and board member. No. 1:18-CV-327-RP, 2019 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 41009 (W.D. Tex. March 14, 2019). Greenberg drafted...more
Trump Signs Orders to Speed Up Oil and Gas Pipeline Construction - "President Trump signed two executive orders that he says will speed up construction of pipelines and other projects to enhance the production and...more
In an unpublished decision, the Ninth Circuit affirmed the Central District of California’s interpretation of the related acts provision in a professional liability policy, holding that related acts reported in a prior policy...more
In Attallah v. Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy, LLP, 2019 WL 362266, the Supreme Court of New York's Appellate Division upheld the dismissal of a legal malpractice and breach of fiduciary duty case against a law firm on the...more
In Owens v. Corrigan, the Fourth District Court of Appeal held that an arbitration provision in the parties’ retainer agreement was unenforceable under the Fee Arbitration Rule of the Rules Regulating the Florida Bar. ...more
A recent decision by the New York State Appellate Court highlights why a law firm should precisely identify in its written engagement agreement what tasks the client should and should not expect the firm will perform. Genesis...more
Starwood Management, LLC by and through Norma Gonzalez v. Don Swaim and Rose Walker, LLP, Texas Supreme Court Number 16-0431 (September 29, 2017) - Brief Summary - The Texas Supreme Court overturned the trial court and...more
The Holding - In Robert W. Baird & Co. Inc., v. The Honorable Christopher Whitten, 2017 WL 4296583 (Ariz. App. Sep. 28, 2017) (774 Ariz. Adv. Rep.4), the Arizona Court of Appeals just held that a legal malpractice...more