Professional Negligence by Attorneys — Legal Malpractice in Georgia
Not every legal malpractice case involves abandonment or fraud. Many involve something more subtle but equally harmful: an attorney who showed up, did the work — but did it wrong. Errors in legal research, strategy, document drafting, negotiation, or courtroom conduct that a competent attorney would not have made, and that cost you a winnable case or a valuable claim.
This is professional negligence, and it is the most common form of legal malpractice I handle.
Examples of Attorney Professional Negligence
- Failing to research applicable law or overlooking controlling precedent
- Drafting contracts with errors that created liability or failed to protect your interests
- Failing to conduct adequate discovery, depose key witnesses, or obtain critical evidence
- Providing incorrect legal advice that led you to make a harmful decision
- Failing to assert available defenses or counterclaims
- Errors in jury selection, opening statement, or closing argument that affected the verdict
- Failing to object to inadmissible evidence or improper testimony
- Incorrect advice about the tax implications of a settlement or judgment
- Failure to advise you of a settlement offer that you had a right to consider
- Errors in appellate briefing that resulted in waiver of issues
The Standard of Care
Georgia attorneys are held to the standard of care of a reasonably competent attorney practicing in the same field in similar circumstances. Establishing a breach of this standard typically requires expert testimony from a qualified attorney in the relevant practice area. I work with experienced litigation experts to build the strongest possible case.
Does a Bad Outcome Mean Malpractice?
Not necessarily — attorneys are not guarantors of results. But if a competent attorney in the same situation would have handled the matter differently, and that difference would have changed your outcome, there may be a viable malpractice claim. The distinction between bad luck and bad lawyering is not always obvious. That is exactly what a free consultation with me is designed to determine.