Indiana Appellate Court Holds Violations of Rules of Professional Conduct Alone Cannot Form the Sole Basis of Legal Malpractice Suit

Barnes & Thornburg (“BT”) recently avoided a legal malpractice lawsuit based on representing two clients simultaneously that were conflicted.  In the case, a company called CRIT purchased a controlling interest in a nationwide staffing business, Peoplelink, from William Wilkinson.  After the sale, Wilkinson remained with Peoplelink as its CEO until 2015, when he hired BT to represent him in connection with his departure.  The agreement which Wilkinson and Peoplelink ultimately executed contained non-compete language.

After the sale, BT remained as Peoplelink’s outside counsel after Wilkinson left the company; but, continued to represent Wilkinson in other unrelated matters.  As an incidental result of this continued representation of both parties, an attorney at BT accidently sent an email intended for Wilkinson to Peoplelink relating to Wilkinon’s purchase of another staffing company only 7 months after his departure – in violation of the restrictive covenants.

Peoplelink thereafter brought a legal malpractice lawsuit against BT and used violations of Rules 1.7 and 1.8 – which govern attorney’s representation of clients with conflicts of interest – to form the basis of their claim that BT breached their duty to Peoplelink.  However, the Indiana Appellate Court held that violations of the rules alone could not establish a legal malpractice claim and that Peoplelink did not allege that the firm’s malpractice caused any actual damages.  It also reasoned that Peoplelink's argument for disgorgement of legal fees as its basis for damages was not enough to maintain the claim.

CRIT v. Wilkinson, et. al, 2018 Ind. App. LEXIS 16 (Ind. Ct. App. 2018)

Alex Passo and the Patterson Law Firm, LLC handle legal malpractice lawsuits throughout Illinois and Indiana.  If you have a matter that you would like to discuss with Alex, you can reach him at (312) 750-1820 or apasso@pattersonlawfirm.com.

Indiana Attorney Suspended for Lying to Client about Filing Appeal

A Northern Indiana attorney was suspended for 90 days for lying to one of his clients.  The attorney was retained by the client to seek an appeal of the denial of a petition for expungement of a misdemeanor theft conviction.  During the course of representation, the client requested updates on the status of the appeal and the attorney made statements which implied that he had filed the appellate brief.  However, no brief was ever filed by the attorney and the appellate court eventually dismissed the appeal with prejudice.  The attorney never explained to the client of the dismissal or any of the available options, which led to the client filing a grievance.  The Indiana Supreme Court Disciplinary Commission found that the attorney violated several Indiana Professional Conduct Rules – 1.1, 1.3, 1.4(a)(3), 1.4(b), 3.3(a)(1), 8.1(a), and 8.4(c).

Alex Passo and Patterson Law Firm, LLC handle legal malpractice claims throughout Illinois and Indiana.  If you have a matter that you would like to discuss with Alex you can reach him at (312) 750-1820 or apasso@pattersonlawfirm.com.

Hamilton County Adoption Attorney Receives Public Reprimand For Several Violations of Rules of Professional Conduct

A Hamilton County Indiana adoption attorney was recently publicly reprimanded by the Indiana Supreme Court for violating Professional Rules of Conduct 1.7 (Conflicts of Interest), 1.8 (Conflicts of Interest), and 8.4 (General Misconduct).  Here, the attorney was hired by a couple to represent them in the adoption of a child.  Before the attorney’s retention, the couple had previously already reached an agreement with the birth mother to allow them to adopt the child.

However, when the attorney contacted the birth mother, she expressed concerns with his current clients and asked the attorney for profiles of other prospective adoptive parents.  Despite representing the couple, the attorney nevertheless showed the birth mother the profiles of other potential adoptive parents.  Eventually the birth mother selected a different couple than the attorney’s original clients. 

The attorney never informed his original clients that the adoptive mother had concerns with them or that he showed her different options until after the decision was made.  Thereafter, the attorney sat down with them to discuss reimbursement of fees the couple advanced to him.  The couple and the attorney appeared to have resolved the issue at this meeting, however, at the conclusion of the meeting, the attorney presented them with a release purporting to bar them from filing a “claim” to the Indiana Supreme Court disciplinary commission.

The attorney erred in this circumstance by failing to disclose to his clients that the birth mother had concerns with selecting them as adoptive parents.  But, the most critical error was then representing the birth mother in her selection of an alternative set of adoptive parents without obtaining consent from the original clients.

Alex Passo and the Patterson Law Firm, LLC handle legal malpractice actions throughout Illinois and Indiana.  If you have a matter that you would like to discuss with Alex, you may reach him at (312) 750-1820 or apasso@pattersonlawfirm.com.