By David Peel
When someone has a potential injury case and the attorney they hire fails to file the suit within the statute of limitations, the injured person is actually hurt twice.
First by the tort feasor, who is the person who caused the accident to begin with. But secondly, by the lawyer or law firm that they trusted to represent them and retrieve their damages.
Ironically, the best defense most attorneys who have committed malpractice has is the one-year statute of limitations.
In Tennessee, an action for legal malpractice against an attorney must be brought within one year from the date the cause of action “accrues.” TCA 28-3-104(c). The statute of limitations begins to run when:
(1) a defendant attorney deviates from the accepted standard of care,
(2) this deviation/negligence causes the plaintiff to suffer a legally cognizable, actual injury, and
(3) the plaintiff knows, or in the exercise of reasonable care and diligence, should have known that the injury was caused by the defendant attorney.
The Court of Appeals had noted that “an actual injury may . . . take the form of the plaintiff being forced to take some action or otherwise suffer ‘some actual inconvenience’ such as incurring an expense, as the result of the defendant’s negligent or wrongful act.”
I have reviewed such cases and helped resolve several disputes between lawyers’ malpractice insurance and their clients.
While I do not really advertise handling such cases, victims still deserve competent counsel that they can trust to help them with their recovery.
Just like victims of medical malpractice, the injured party is entitled to damages if they are her through the negligence of a professional.
Peel seeks justice for those injured in truck, motorcycle and car crashes. He often addresses churches, clubs and groups without charge. Peel may be reached through PeelLawFirm.com wherein other articles may be accessed.
