Kevin's Blog
Many people, who have problems with their solicitor feel that the Law Society could deal with any complaints and this might save them the expense of instructing another solicitor to deal with the matter.
The Law Society will look into complaints in relation to misconduct, overcharging and inadequate professional services.
In this article I only want to deal with the question of inadequate professional services. If you feel that your solicitor has mishandled a particular transaction and you have suffered a loss, the appropriate step to take is to seek independent legal advice and consider the possibility of suing your solicitor for negligence. If you report the matter to the Law Society, they will generally advise that they can only look into a matter if financial loss has not been caused. If they see that you have suffered a loss then they will undoubtedly suggest that you take advice from another solicitor. Even if they do look into it, the largest penalty they can impose is €3,000.
The general rule in negligence cases is that you must issue your proceedings within six years of the negligent act you are complaining about. I have seen a number of cases where the solicitor has continued to act for the injured party on the basis that “leave it with me, don’t worry about it, everything will be fine”. Time passes and then the six years has elapsed. In these circumstances, a strong argument can be made that the normal statutory six year period should be extended if the client felt that he was misled into continuing to stay with the solicitor and thus inadvertently allowed his/her claim to be statute barred. However, it’s best not to get into that situation as there is absolutely no guarantee that the relevant time limits would be extended.
If you have a problem with your solicitor and if you feel that he/she has acted in a negligent manner and you have suffered a loss as a result, you should immediately contact another solicitor to get a second opinion. It can be difficult to get another solicitor to sue a colleague, particularly outside the Dublin area, and if you have difficulty locating such a solicitor, you can contact the Law Society directly as they have a list of solicitors who are prepared to take on such actions, or you can contact ourselves.
The bottom line however is that once you become aware that you either have a problem or you may have a problem with your solicitor, you should act without delay.
Kevin Brophy,
Many people, who have problems with their solicitor feel that the Law Society could deal with any complaints and this might save them the expense of instructing another solicitor to deal with the matter.
The Law Society will look into complaints in relation to misconduct, overcharging and inadequate professional services.
In this article I only want to deal with the question of inadequate professional services. If you feel that your solicitor has mishandled a particular transaction and you have suffered a loss, the appropriate step to take is to seek independent legal advice and consider the possibility of suing your solicitor for negligence. If you report the matter to the Law Society, they will generally advise that they can only look into a matter if financial loss has not been caused. If they see that you have suffered a loss then they will undoubtedly suggest that you take advice from another solicitor. Even if they do look into it, the largest penalty they can impose is €3,000.
The general rule in negligence cases is that you must issue your proceedings within six years of the negligent act you are complaining about. I have seen a number of cases where the solicitor has continued to act for the injured party on the basis that “leave it with me, don’t worry about it, everything will be fine”. Time passes and then the six years has elapsed. In these circumstances, a strong argument can be made that the normal statutory six year period should be extended if the client felt that he was misled into continuing to stay with the solicitor and thus inadvertently allowed his/her claim to be statute barred. However, it’s best not to get into that situation as there is absolutely no guarantee that the relevant time limits would be extended.
If you have a problem with your solicitor and if you feel that he/she has acted in a negligent manner and you have suffered a loss as a result, you should immediately contact another solicitor to get a second opinion. It can be difficult to get another solicitor to sue a colleague, particularly outside the Dublin area, and if you have difficulty locating such a solicitor, you can contact the Law Society directly as they have a list of solicitors who are prepared to take on such actions, or you can contact ourselves.
The bottom line however is that once you become aware that you either have a problem or you may have a problem with your solicitor, you should act without delay.
Kevin Brophy,
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