Legal Question in Civil Litigation in California
My mother was involved in a class action lawsuit. She was recently contacted by the firm that handled the suit and was told they lost and want to recover their costs. My mother is 88 years old, legally blind and on Social Security. She owns her home which was Homesteaded and is part of a living trust. She also has a couple of small CD's also in the trust. How can she protect her assessts from being attached for payment of costs?
6 Answers from Attorneys
Unbelievable. I would have an attorney write to the law firm (on attorney letterhead) and suggest to them that your mother is considering her options regarding a legal malpractice lawsuit against them; and any attempt to collect from her would likely be met with a countersuit.
Also your mother never signed any contract to take on this case, and cannot be held liable for costs.
I've never heard of such a thing. On what basis does the firm think your mother can be held responsible? Real class action lawyers know better than this.
My guess is that this is a scam and that the people who are trying to collect from your mother have nothing to do with any real lawsuit. Your mother should get their names, phone numbers, etc. and report them to her local prosecutors, both state and federal.
Also, report them to the State Bar of California, immediately.
Hoffman's got it right. This sounds like an elder scam. Contact your local DA's elder financial abuse unit, and if they really are attorneys, file a complaint with the State Bar too.
It sounds like a scam to everyone here. Defendants who prevail in a plaintiff class action may recover their costs from the named representative of the class but not from the entire class. (Van de Kamp v. Bank of America Nat'l Trust & Sav. Assn (1988) 204 Cal.App.3d 819, 867.)
She would only be liable for costs if she was a named representative, and signed an agreement with the attorneys clarifying that she would be liable for costs.
If you want to verify whether they are real attorneys, you can verify their status at http://members.calbar.ca.gov/search/member.aspx
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