Legal Question in Construction Law in California
arguements to winnig an appeal on a defendant default action
my previous attorney methodically orchestrateded a default judgement against me, by not contacting me directly when our trail was to begin. the message of the time was receved the day of the trail on my cell phone but date stamped the day before. this being a cell phone malfunction is not uncommon. the judge denied my retrail on motion and said i should have clled my attoney, which i did. to this day we have not heard a word or gotten a response from the attorney to this day. 11-02-07 was the weve heard from him. a 34,000 judgement is ajainst my family. what arguments on appeal should i use to save my house from these slick attorneys. my attorney had previously been suspended twice and put on probation in 2003. i had know idea of his past until looking up his history. can i seek a malpractice claim ajainst him?
2 Answers from Attorneys
Re: arguements to winnig an appeal on a defendant default action
You may file a CCP 473 motion within 6 months of the order. Contact me directly.
Re: arguements to winnig an appeal on a defendant default action
At the time the judgment was rendered, you had four possibilities:
appeal, reconsideration, relief from default (CCP 473), and malpractice.
Your question doesn't say how long ago the trial date was, nor when the judgment was entered, but three of your four possibilities have or had very short time limits, like 90 days or six months. Malpractice is the longest; the statute of limitations for legal malpractice is somewhat complicated but you have no less than one year, usually more, in which to file a suit against the attorney.
Since time has either run out already, or may be running out quickly, on your options, it is very important to get all the time-line facts before an attorney as soon as possible. Even one more day of delay might cost you one of your opportunities to get this fixed.
One possibility is to contact Legal Aid in Berkeley (or Oakland). You could also ask again on LawGuru, or contact an attorney who answers you on LawGuru, but please give full date information including trial date and date stamped on any order or judgment you have received since the trial date.
The State Bar would probably appreciate hearing about this; it could lead to the attorney's disbarment.
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