When you sign an agreement to work with an attorney, you hope that everything goes smoothly from start to finish. But, with so many attorneys to compare and details to consider, it’s possible you could make a mistake.
There are ways to protect against a costly and time- consuming error, such as by asking the right questions up front.
Here are five questions you can ask to help prevent legal malpractice:
- How long have you been practicing law? More experience is always better than less experience, especially if everything else is equal. The longer a person has been practicing law, the greater chance there is that they won’t make an error.
- Has your license been suspended in the past? This is a difficult question to ask, as you don’t want to come across as rude, but it’s important to know the answer. If the answer is yes, dig deeper to find out why. You may come to find that the attorney was involved in some type of malpractice in the past.
- Do I fit the profile of your typical client? This helps prevent a situation in which you don’t see eye to eye, which can lead you to believe that the attorney is not doing what they said they would.
- What is your payment structure? Money always comes into the equation when hiring an attorney, regardless of the details of your case. Understanding the payment structure is important, as it protects you against your attorney partaking in some form of financial misconduct.
- What kind of special training do you have? Dig deeper than the attorney’s law degree to better understand if they have any form of training that can help you with your case.
Even if you ask these questions at the outset, you could still find yourself in a difficult spot. For example, if your attorney neglects to file an important document with the court by the deadline, it could slow down your case and possibly harm your ability to come out on top.
If you have reason to believe you’re the victim of legal malpractice, discuss your concerns with your attorney. If this gets you nowhere, learn more about your legal rights in Colorado and the steps you can take to protect them.
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