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  1. #1
    Join Date
    Jan 2010
    Posts
    102

    Default Attorney Passed Away

    my great attorney passed away,
    my case was active.
    I was told the estate would give a partial refund on my "flat rate" , yet ..the refund will not cover another attorney to finish the case.

    Of course ,I think he should be paid...but I also think it is unfair to hand me a partial file left in legal limbo with not enough money to resolve the issu
    does the malpractice INsurance help cover the gap??

  2. #2
    Join Date
    Jan 2006
    Posts
    38,867

    Default Re: Attorney Passes Away

    I was told the estate would give a partial refund on my "flat rate" , yet ..the refund will not cover another attorney to finish the case
    Why would they be responsible for the cost of another attorney? All they are liable for is refunding the amount not earned by the deceased attorney. What you do after that is up to you.

    It makes no sense to expect this attorney to be liable for costs they have nothing to do with. Maybe you can find an attorney that is cheaper and have some savings. Maybe you can't and it will cost you some more than this attorney had charged. Whatever you find is irrelevant because this attorney charged what he did but that has nothing to do with what another attorney will charge and this would surely not fall under malpractice.

    I don't see dieing as anything close to malpractice.

  3. #3
    Join Date
    Jan 2010
    Posts
    102

    Default Re: Attorney Passes Away

    I too do not see Malpractice, I am asking If the Malpr ins would cover any losses for the estate?

    #1 we have a tragic situation
    #2 the priority should be to the client & they must get a new attorney (which is a RISK)
    #3 the flat rate was paid up front...however due to DEATH...he did not complete the case... So Now the refund should be enough to cover the wrapping up the case....

    by handing the client a partial case...they cannot afford to procede is worth ZERO..
    that means the client wasted all that money & got nothing in return...

    so my thought they should make sure my refund will be enough to complete the case.. It would be a shame to not be able to complete the hard work that was done by the deceased attorney.. my goal is the result.

    I also paid with my credit card,,, & CC said they would get a full refund back because...the service was not completed....if you have a masterpiece painting & hand me part of it...it is deemed worthless

  4. #4
    Join Date
    Jan 2006
    Posts
    38,867

    Default Re: Attorney Passes Away

    =birdwillow;381807]
    #3 the flat rate was paid up front...however due to DEATH...he did not complete the case... So Now the refund should be enough to cover the wrapping up the case....
    let me set an example that shows why this is not true.

    attorney A charges $1000 for a jaywalking case
    attorney B charges $5000 for a jaywalking case

    you hire A. Halfway through the case, A dies. A performed approximately 1/2 the work required for the case and as such you are refunded $500. Now, you want to hire B to finish the case. He states that since about half the work is complete, he will only charge you $2500. Is this all fair? Yes, of course except that A died and he was not able to finish your case.

    Should the estate be liable for the additional $2000 it will take to finish your case? Of course not. A completed 1/2 the work and you were refunded 1/2 of your payment. That is about as fair as you can get. Why should his estate be liable for the payment to another attorney that charges whatever they want?

    Now, at the very most you could ever reasonably consider is a full refund but along with that you would be entitled to no work product from the deceased attorney. That would return you to where you started: no money spent, no legal work done.

    You are surely not going to get the estate to pay for some other attorney so I would suggest, at the greatest, would be to seek a full refund in exchange for no work product.

    Now, if there is product or action that cannot be undone, you should reasonable be expected to have to pay for that.

    I don't think you will even get such an offer accepted but there is more chance of that than getting them to pay for some other attorney to finish the case for you.



    re the credit card dispute:

    A credit card will only reverse charges during a dispute and I believe most limit it to 90 days. This is only a "cooling off and investigation period". The CC company has no legal right to make a judicial decision of the facts of the situation and withholding the money permanently would be them acting in just such a capacity. They could actually be held liable for the funds to the attorney's estate and as such are not going to make a permanent reversal.

    If you cannot come to an agreement with the estate or have not taken legal action against the other party within that time, the CC company has no choice but to reinstate the charges against your account.

  5. #5
    Join Date
    Sep 2005
    Location
    Behind a Desk
    Posts
    98,846

    Default Re: Attorney Passes Away

    This is already being discussed in your other thread.

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