Attorney Fraud and Misrepresentation — Legal Malpractice in Georgia
Most legal malpractice cases involve negligence — an attorney who made mistakes. But some cases involve something worse: an attorney who intentionally deceived you, misrepresented the status of your case, stole your money, or lied to cover up their own failures. These cases involve fraud, and the legal consequences are far more serious than simple negligence.
Common Forms of Attorney Fraud
- Misrepresentation of case status — Telling you a case is ongoing when it has been dismissed, or that a judgment has been appealed when no appeal was filed.
- Theft of settlement funds — Receiving your settlement check and failing to disburse your portion, or disbursing less than you are owed.
- Fee fraud — Billing for work never performed, inflating hours, or collecting retainers without doing any work.
- Forged documents — Signing your name to settlement agreements, court filings, or checks without your authorization.
- False statements about case outcomes — Telling you a case was won or lost when the opposite is true, to avoid accountability for the attorney’s own failures.
- Concealment of malpractice — Lying to a client about the reason a case failed in order to conceal that the attorney’s negligence was the real cause.
Civil and Criminal Exposure
Attorney fraud exposes an attorney to civil liability for damages, punitive damages, and breach of fiduciary duty — and potentially to criminal prosecution for theft, conversion, and fraud. I pursue all available civil remedies and, where appropriate, refer matters to the State Bar of Georgia and law enforcement.
The Statute of Limitations and Tolling
Importantly, when an attorney fraudulently conceals malpractice, the statute of limitations may be tolled under O.C.G.A. § 9-3-96 until the fraud is discovered or reasonably should have been discovered. If your attorney deceived you to hide what they did wrong, you may have more time than you think — but do not wait to find out.