People retain lawyers for several different reasons. People intending to file lawsuits or respond to a pending civil suit often need legal guidance throughout that process. Spouses filing for divorce usually hire lawyers as well. People facing criminal charges usually cannot navigate criminal proceedings without assistance.
Lawyers educate their clients about the law and their rights. They help draft contracts that hold up during conflict. They develop a legal strategy for trial and help their clients ensure compliance with all applicable statutes.
Unfortunately, not all lawyers provide their clients with the best guidance or advocacy. Some of them let outside influences impact their job performance. In such cases, clients may potentially have grounds for legal malpractice lawsuits. Failing to acknowledge a conflict of interest could lead to allegations of malpractice in some cases.
What causes a conflict of interest?
Lawyers typically have a duty to act in the best interest of their clients and to conform to all professional standards. However, they may find themselves in circumstances where their own interests impact their ability to properly represent certain clients.
For example, an attorney who invested in a local business may not give appropriate support to a client suing that business for a violation of employment laws. Financial concerns are a common source of conflicts of interest. When helping a client could cost a lawyer money by diminishing the value of their investment or harming other working relationships, they may fail in their duty to their clients.
Other times, personal relationships and professional connections can create conflicts of interest. If the case somehow relates to a family member or close friend of an attorney, their connection to the other parties involved could undermine their job performance.
Lawyers generally have an obligation to let their clients know when there could be issues preventing them from doing their jobs well. In fact, they sometimes need to refer prospective clients or returning clients with new concerns to different lawyers to ensure that they receive appropriate advocacy. If attorneys take cases involving conflicts of interest and their clients have negative outcomes, the lawyer may have committed malpractice. In those cases, the affected client may have grounds for a legal malpractice lawsuit.
Documenting information about an undisclosed conflict of interest can help people hold professionals accountable for failing to fulfill their obligations. Lawyers who don’t adequately represent their clients are sometimes liable for the impact of their decisions.