REQUEST A FREE CONSULTATION212-808-800824/7 EMERGENCY HOTLINE516-965-4370

Blog

Legal Malpractice Suit Dismissed As Untimely Despite Client's Ignorance of Malpractice

Last month a Supreme Court Judge in Manhattan dismissed a legal malpractice claim against a lawyer who failed to show up at a conference which led to dismissal of the client's case. The attorney's no-show resulted in the dismissal of an Article 78 proceeding against the NYC Department of Education in which the plaintiff-client sought reinstatement of her eligibility to teach. The plaintiff-client had retained the attorney to file an Article 78 proceeding in June 2010. This proceeding survived the DOE's motion to dismiss in December 2010, but when the defendant-attorney failed to appear for a conference in January 2013 the Article 78 was dismissed. The plaintiff claimed the defendant -attorney failed to provide status reports on her Article 78 and that she last heard from the defendant-attorney regarding in November 2011.

The plaintiff was unaware of the dismissal of her Article 78 proceeding or the malpractice of her attorney until September 2015. The legal malpractice suit was filed in September 2016. When does the three year deadline (statute of limitations) begin to run: when the client learned of the malpractice or dismissal, the last date she reasonably believed she was represented by the defendant attorney; or, the date of the malpractice? Justice Lynn Kotler, ruled in favor of the defendant-attorney and held that the statute of limitations began to run on the date of the alleged malpractice. In other words, this Court held that the deadline started when the Article 78 proceeding was dismissed in January 2013 despite the absence of a claim the client was so informed. LeMonda v Glass, 2017 WL 5957138

Ronald C. Burke, Esq

Trial Attorney with 30+ Years of Experience Attorney Ronald C. Burke, Esq. has more than 30 years of experience and has focused his career on representing clients in cases involving personal injury, medical malpractice and legal malpractice. He is a seasoned trial lawyer and has won many seven-figure settlements and verdicts for his clients over the years, including many case victories listed among the largest in the history of the New York State. He has been featured in the news and is a regular lecturer for the New York County Lawyers Association, as well as having lectured before the New York State Bar Association. Ron is also an attorney with Kelner & Kelner, a New York personal injury law firm. Awards and Accolades Mr. Burke's awards and accolades are many. Among them, he has been included in New York Super Lawyers® each year since 2010, and he has received the highest-possible AV® Rating from Martindale-Hubbell®. Verdict Search, a part of the New York Law Journal, frequently recognizes his notable successes after winning some of the highest settlements and verdicts in past years. He was also featured in their list of the "Top New York Verdicts " and "Top New York Settlements." He is a member of the New York State Bar Association and is licensed to practice law in the U.S. District Court for the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York, as well as before the United States Supreme Court. When Attorney Burke is not handling legal malpractice cases, he is highly involved in the local community. He was a member of the Village of Rockville Centre Volunteer Fire Department, has served on the local school board and as Chairman of the local Zoning Board. Learn more about Attorney Burke and how he can skillfully handle your malpractice case by contacting the Law Offices of Ronald C. Burke, Esq. right away to schedule your complimentary case evaluation. Our firm is here to help! Contact a New York Legal Malpractice Attorney Our firm provides each client's case with thorough preparation and aggressive representation, ensuring that you win the best possible results for your case whether it is settled or goes to trial. As a seasoned trial lawyer, Mr. Burke can provide the strong and relentless representation you need to establish negligence in a legal malpractice case and to recover any damages you may have suffered. Our firm can recover compensation for pre-trial and trial malpractice, violations of fee arrangements, loss of income, pain and suffering, and much more. Contact us today!

Comments

There are no comments for this post. Be the first and Add your Comment below.

Leave a Comment

Go to Top