Legal Question in Family Law in Washington
Conflict of interest???
After a car accident I hired an firm to handle the case for me and a few months later my wife, who I was separated from hired the same firm and filed for divorce. I called my lawyer and asked him if this was right. He told me not to worry and it would be better for me and save me money. ( I never signed a consent). We dropped the divorce and tried to work it out but it didnt work. She filed again and they called me to pick up the paperwork.
They told me if we couldnt come to an agreement on the terms that we would set a court date. A few months have gone by and I haven't heard anything so I went to see a Lawyer to handle this for me and I learn that I am allready divorced and she got all the terms she wanted. I had no Idea what was going on. I trusted this firm, they did a good job for me in my case and now I fell like they used that to help my ex-wife. The Lawyer I saw today told me she needs more info but is pretty sure that she can get divorce thrown out and redo everything, but that comes at a hefty cost. She told me I could even try to talk to the firm and tell them to fix this or I am going to the Bar about this. How can this happen? Is this a conflict of interest? What can I do?
1 Answer from Attorneys
Re: Conflict of interest???
Sure sounds like a conflict of interest to me. Any firm (and any individual lawyer) owes a duty of care to a current or past client such that it was a conflict the moment the firm (even if it was another attorney there) helped your ex file the dissolution, and it sounds as though it just went downhill from there.
The moment your ex said to the attorney, "I want a divorce" is the moment when the firm needed to withdraw from representing either one of you.
This happens when an attorney forgets his duties to his client, or when a firm doesn't do a conflict check. It is important to attorneys to make sure they are not representing a party adverse to a previous or current client. That's why attorneys want to know your name and the name of the opposing party.
Sounds as though the lawyer you saw today recognizes the issues at play here and has sorted them out for you. Yes, that same lawyer has a major uphill battle to get your divorce straightened out. She needs to be paid for that. Dissolution matters in WA cannot be done on a contingency (there is a rule about that, too).
I don't know any lawyer who practices family law and at the same time has a professional liability practice. That is one heck of an unlikely combination. Talk to her. Ask her if she wants to do the whole thing or if she wants you to go consult with somebody else about the professional liability of the firm. She'll tell you.
You might want to take a look at avvo (that's a v v o dot com) to find a lawyer who will tackle a professional liability claim. It is a specialized area.
I am so sorry this happened to you. It must be a nightmare. Now, you have to use the same system to set it right. I wish you all the best with this. It can be fixed.
Hope this helps. Elizabeth Powell
Related Questions & Answers
Looking for something else?
10,200 active attorneys ready to answer your legal questions today.
Featured Attorneys
Earn additional revenue and grow your business.
