Close view of three worn cardboard banker's boxes of client files stacked on the floor of a small law office hallway

What did your lawyer do wrong?

Every way a lawyer can fail a client, what the law requires you to prove, what a claim can be worth, and what to do next.

By what went wrong.

An empty, unlit small law office seen through a glass door at dusk: chairs pushed in

Abandonment and no communication

Your lawyer disappeared, stopped returning calls, or walked away without protecting your case.

6 min read

An elderly man's weathered hands resting on a stack of signed documents at a dining table

Breach of fiduciary duty

Your lawyer put their own interests ahead of yours, lied to you, or misused your trust.

6 min read

Two separate client folders lying side by side on a lawyer's desk

Conflict of interest

Your lawyer served someone else's interests, or their own, instead of yours.

6 min read

Extreme close-up of a printed contract page with a sentence struck through in pen and a handwritten correction in the margin

Drafting errors

Contracts, wills, and deeds that did not say what they were supposed to say.

7 min read

Unopened evidence: a sealed padded envelope and a banker's box with its lid still taped shut sitting on a shelf in a storage room

Failure to investigate

Your lawyer never dug into the facts, witnesses, records, or assets that would have changed your case.

6 min read

A court clerk's date stamp and a stamped document on a worn service counter

Missed deadline

A blown statute of limitations or court deadline that cost you a case you could have won.

6 min read

Two people at a small cafe table, seen from the side at a distance

Bad legal advice

Your lawyer told you something about the law or your options that a careful lawyer would not have.

6 min read

A long multi-page itemized invoice unfolded across a kitchen counter next to a calculator and a highlighter

Overbilling and fee disputes

Padded hours, surprise charges, or a fee far out of line with the work.

6 min read

A settlement check envelope and a multi-page settlement agreement lying on a doormat inside a front door

Settled without your consent

Your lawyer accepted, rejected, or hid a settlement offer without your authority.

6 min read

An open bank statement envelope and a checkbook register on a desk at night lit by a single lamp

Stolen client funds

Your lawyer took, kept, or 'borrowed' settlement money, a retainer, or other funds held for you.

6 min read

By the kind of case.

A stack of unpaid bills and past-due envelopes held together with a binder clip on a desk beside a closed

Bankruptcy lawyer

Unlisted debts, dismissed cases, and fees the bankruptcy court can review.

7 min read

An empty wooden defendant's table in an old courtroom

Criminal defense lawyer

Most states make you clear the conviction first, and many make you prove innocence.

8 min read

Two wedding rings lying on a stack of family court paperwork on a kitchen table next to a child's crayon drawing

Divorce lawyer

Missed assets, bad valuations, and settlements you were talked into.

7 min read

An old family home's dining room table with a framed family photo lying face up beside an open will in a blue legal backer

Wills and estate planning

Who can sue depends on privity: beneficiaries in most states, only the estate in a few.

7 min read

A worn passport-style booklet with no readable text

Immigration lawyer

Reopen the immigration case first under Lozada, then look at money damages.

7 min read

A man with a forearm brace and a cane sitting in a hospital physical therapy waiting area

Personal injury lawyer

Missed filing deadlines and cheap settlements are the classic injury-case claims.

7 min read

A house closing on a conference table: a set of house keys with a paper tag

Real estate lawyer

Title problems, bad contracts, and closings that went wrong.

7 min read

Not sure which one fits?

Describe what happened. An attorney who handles malpractice claims can sort out the rest.

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