Legal Question in Civil Litigation in Illinois
Being Sued
My father (an attorney) passed away in March owing some money to another law firm. This money is from cases that they referred to my dad and he had not yet paid them the referral fee. They are now trying to sue my mother personally saying that she benefited from this money. My dad was a sole practioner and had no real assests, so an estate was not opened. Can they sue my mom personally? How can we successfully defend this?? As she had no idea any of this was going on.
3 Answers from Attorneys
Re: Being Sued
Your going to need representation. The law firm may or may not have a valid claim depending on additional facts that an attorney should review. Please call or e-mail my office and I will be happy to assist.
Re: Being Sued
I would first see if there was a referral agreement signed by the client. I would also ask that the referring attorney provide time sheets for the work that was performed by them.
Re: Being Sued
First, look to see what is the basis of their claim. That is, was there a referral fee agreement? Was that referral fee approved by the clients--it has to be approved otherwise there may be an argument that it is not valid.
As a sole proprietor chances are that the debt of your father (whether business or personal since he was not a corporation and thus not personally shielded) are the debts of your mother as well.
You really need to get an attorney to help you out on this. That is the best advice I can give you.
If you have more questions, you may call my office. I'll be more than happy to discuss this with you further.
Taradji
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