When Lawyers Screw Up
When Lawyers Screw Up

Author: Herbert Kritzer

Publisher: University Press of Kansas

Published: 2018-03-15

Total Pages: 248

ISBN-13: 0700625852

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Unhappy clients bring thousands of legal malpractice claims every year, against mega law firms and solo practitioners, for simple errors or egregious misconduct, and for losses than can reach $100 million or more. This in an industry, legal services, generating nearly $300 billion a year in revenue and touching every facet of American society. Yet, scant if any scholarly attention has been paid to the questions and consequences of lawyers' professional liability. This book is the first to fully explore the mistakes lawyers sometimes make, the nature of these mistakes, the harm they do, and the significant disparities in outcomes for corporate and individual victims of lawyers' errors. A systematic, empirical study of legal malpractice, When Lawyers Screw Up employs both quantitative and qualitative methods to examine the frequency and nature of claims, the area of practice producing them, the amounts at stake, and the resolutions. The authors also use a range of data sources to study the frequency and outcomes of legal malpractice trials, whether bench or jury. Their comparison of legal malpractice cases involving the corporate and personal service sectors reveal the difficulties confronting claims coming from the personal sector—difficulties that often deny victims redress, even when they have suffered significant harm. When Lawyers Screw Up draws on a series of interviews to describe the practices of lawyers with expertise in handling legal malpractice claims, even as it notes how few such experts are available to prosecute these claims. In light of their findings, the authors suggest a range of reforms that would help victims of legal malpractice, particularly individuals and small businesses, in pursuing their claims.

No Contest
No Contest

Author: Ralph Nader

Publisher: Random House

Published: 1998-12-22

Total Pages: 461

ISBN-13: 0375752587

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

The legal rights of Americans are threatened as never before. In No Contest, Ralph Nader and Wesley J. Smith reveal how power lawyers--Kenneth Starr perhaps the most notorious among them--misuse and manipulate the law at the expense of fairness and equity. Nader and Smith document how corporate lawyers File baseless lawsuits Use court secrecy to their unfair advantage Engage in billing fraud Nader and Smith sound the warning that this system-wide abuse is eroding our basic legal rights, and propose a positive, commonsense vision of what should be done to reverse the corporate-inspired corruption of civil justice. Timely, incisive, and highly readable, this is a book for all citizens who believe that prompt access to justice is the backbone of democracy, and a precious right to be reclaimed.

Common Sense Rules of Advocacy for Lawyers
Common Sense Rules of Advocacy for Lawyers

Author: Keith Evans

Publisher: The Capitol Net Inc

Published: 2010-03

Total Pages: 197

ISBN-13: 1587331853

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

"Reading this book would profit any advocate of any experience level. Judicious application of the advice contained in the book will make anyone a better advocate."-- Bob Dekle, Legal Skills Professor, University of Florida, and retired assistant state attorney.

Model Rules of Professional Conduct
Model Rules of Professional Conduct

Author: American Bar Association. House of Delegates

Publisher: American Bar Association

Published: 2007

Total Pages: 216

ISBN-13: 9781590318737

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

The Model Rules of Professional Conduct provides an up-to-date resource for information on legal ethics. Federal, state and local courts in all jurisdictions look to the Rules for guidance in solving lawyer malpractice cases, disciplinary actions, disqualification issues, sanctions questions and much more. In this volume, black-letter Rules of Professional Conduct are followed by numbered Comments that explain each Rule's purpose and provide suggestions for its practical application. The Rules will help you identify proper conduct in a variety of given situations, review those instances where discretionary action is possible, and define the nature of the relationship between you and your clients, colleagues and the courts.

Stand Up For Yourself Without Getting Fired
Stand Up For Yourself Without Getting Fired

Author: Donna Ballman

Publisher: Red Wheel/Weiser

Published: 2012-09-21

Total Pages: 223

ISBN-13: 1601635648

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Take a deep breath and learn how to deal with a bad work situation: “Like having an employment attorney on call. . . . It’s exactly what employees need.” —Alison Green, author of Ask A Manager USA Best Book Award Winner Hate your job? Ready to quit? Facing a layoff before you even have a chance to quit? Is your boss is a flaming jerk? Think you might have a lawsuit? If any of these scenarios apply to you, you are facing a crucial career moment—and mistakes and misinformation will cost you dearly. In Stand Up for Yourself Without Getting Fired, celebrated attorney Donna Ballman provides winning answers to these and many more tough questions, such as: I think they’re getting ready to lay me off. What can I do? My boss is creating a hostile environment. Can I sue? What does it mean if I sign a paper saying I’m an independent contractor and not an employee? Am I exempt from overtime? Whether you’re a recent college grad or an almost-retiree, newly employed or laid off after twenty years; gay or straight; single or married with kids; janitor or CEO . . . Stand Up for Yourself Without Getting Fired will give you the specific and relevant advice you need to face any career-threatening situation . . . and come out ahead.

First Thing We Do, Let's Deregulate All the Lawyers
First Thing We Do, Let's Deregulate All the Lawyers

Author: Clifford Winston

Publisher: Rowman & Littlefield

Published: 2011-08-01

Total Pages: 121

ISBN-13: 0815721919

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Not many Americans think of the legal profession as a monopoly, but it is. Abraham Lincoln, who practiced law for nearly twenty-five years, would likely not have been allowed to practice today. Without a law degree from an American Bar Association–sanctioned institution, a would-be lawyer is allowed to practice law in only a few states. ABA regulations also prevent even licensed lawyers who work for firms that are not owned and managed by lawyers from providing legal services. At the same time, a slate of government policies has increased the demand for lawyers' services. Basic economics suggests that those entry barriers and restrictions combined with government-induced demand for lawyers will continue to drive the price of legal services even higher. Clifford Winston, Robert Crandall, and Vikram Maheshri argue that these increased costs cannot be economically justified. They create significant social costs, hamper innovation, misallocate the nation's labor resources, and create socially perverse incentives. In the end, attorneys support inefficient policies that preserve and enhance their own wealth, to the detriment of the general population. To fix this situation, the authors propose a novel solution: deregulation of the legal profession. Lowering the barriers to entry will force lawyers to compete more intensely with each other and to face competition from nonlawyers and firms that are not owned and managed by lawyers. The book provides a much-needed analysis of why legal costs are so high and how they can be reduced without sacrificing the quality of legal services.

Ask a Manager
Ask a Manager

Author: Alison Green

Publisher: Ballantine Books

Published: 2018-05-01

Total Pages: 306

ISBN-13: 0399181822

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

From the creator of the popular website Ask a Manager and New York’s work-advice columnist comes a witty, practical guide to 200 difficult professional conversations—featuring all-new advice! There’s a reason Alison Green has been called “the Dear Abby of the work world.” Ten years as a workplace-advice columnist have taught her that people avoid awkward conversations in the office because they simply don’t know what to say. Thankfully, Green does—and in this incredibly helpful book, she tackles the tough discussions you may need to have during your career. You’ll learn what to say when • coworkers push their work on you—then take credit for it • you accidentally trash-talk someone in an email then hit “reply all” • you’re being micromanaged—or not being managed at all • you catch a colleague in a lie • your boss seems unhappy with your work • your cubemate’s loud speakerphone is making you homicidal • you got drunk at the holiday party Praise for Ask a Manager “A must-read for anyone who works . . . [Alison Green’s] advice boils down to the idea that you should be professional (even when others are not) and that communicating in a straightforward manner with candor and kindness will get you far, no matter where you work.”—Booklist (starred review) “The author’s friendly, warm, no-nonsense writing is a pleasure to read, and her advice can be widely applied to relationships in all areas of readers’ lives. Ideal for anyone new to the job market or new to management, or anyone hoping to improve their work experience.”—Library Journal (starred review) “I am a huge fan of Alison Green’s Ask a Manager column. This book is even better. It teaches us how to deal with many of the most vexing big and little problems in our workplaces—and to do so with grace, confidence, and a sense of humor.”—Robert Sutton, Stanford professor and author of The No Asshole Rule and The Asshole Survival Guide “Ask a Manager is the ultimate playbook for navigating the traditional workforce in a diplomatic but firm way.”—Erin Lowry, author of Broke Millennial: Stop Scraping By and Get Your Financial Life Together

The Lawyer's Conscience
The Lawyer's Conscience

Author: Michael S. Ariens

Publisher: University Press of Kansas

Published: 2023-07-21

Total Pages: 400

ISBN-13: 0700633839

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

In 1776, Thomas Paine declared the end of royal rule in the United States. Instead, “law is king,” for the people rule themselves. Paine’s declaration is the dominant American understanding of how political power is exercised. In making law king, American lawyers became integral to the exercise of political power, so integral to law that legal ethics philosopher David Luban concluded, “lawyers are the law.” American lawyers have defended the exercise of this power from the Revolution to the present by arguing their work is channeled by the profession’s standards of ethical behavior. Those standards demand that lawyers serve the public interest and the interests of their paying clients before themselves. The duties owed both to the public and to clients meant lawyers were in the marketplace selling their services, but not of the marketplace. This is the story of power and the limits of ethical constraints to ensure such power is properly wielded. The Lawyer’s Conscience is the first book examining the history of American lawyer ethics, ranging from the mid-eighteenth century to the “professionalism” crisis facing lawyers today.

What Your Lawyer May Not Want You to Know
What Your Lawyer May Not Want You to Know

Author: Billy F. Brown

Publisher: Abbott Press

Published: 2013-08

Total Pages: 315

ISBN-13: 145821091X

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

Who is your lawyer, and what does he or she really do? That's a question that's not easy to answer--unless you go the source. And unfortunately, most lawyers won't give you a straight answer. In What Your Lawyer May Not Want You to Know, Billy F. Brown unveils the mystery of how lawyers work and how they communicate. In simple language, he helps you understand what happens in a law practice, and he explains the problems clients encounter with lawyers and vice versa. You'll learn - how to determine whether you need a lawyer; - what questions to ask a lawyer; - why lawyers generally disagree with each other; and - how to gain considerable advantages by understanding the legal process. Whether you're a client, a lawyer, or someone in law school, this guidebook will provide you with important insights about the nature of the legal process. Get a rare insider's look into the practice of law with What Your Lawyer May Not Want You to Know.

Gideon's Trumpet
Gideon's Trumpet

Author: Anthony Lewis

Publisher: Vintage

Published: 2011-09-14

Total Pages: 290

ISBN-13: 030780528X

DOWNLOAD EBOOK

The classic bestseller from a two-time Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist that tells the compelling true story of one man's fight for the right to legal counsel for every defendent. A history of the landmark case of Clarence Earl Gideon's fight for the right to legal counsel. Notes, table of cases, index. The classic backlist bestseller. More than 800,000 sold since its first pub date of 1964.