by Stewart Sutton | Jul 24, 2015 | Legal Malpractice
In its July 24, 2015 opinion in Attorney Grievance Commission v. Kenneth Haley, the Maryland Court of Appears disbarred an attorney for depositing legal fees into his business account, instead of his Attorney Trust Account, without client’s informed, written...
by Stewart Sutton | Mar 25, 2015 | Legal Malpractice
Each year, I review dozens of retainer agreements drafted by Maryland law firms. Here’s my list of the six most common problems I find in Retainer Agreements: 1. The language in the Retainer Agreement is ambiguous: I reviewed a contingency fee agreement...
by Stewart Sutton | Mar 18, 2015 | Legal Malpractice
When you hire an attorney, it is common that you will pay a retainer. The attorney is obligated to deposit the entire retainer into the law firm’s Attorney Trust Account (also called an IOLTA Account). The attorney may only withdraw fees as they are earned. I...
by Stewart Sutton | Apr 8, 2014 | Attorney Grievance Commission, Legal Malpractice
The March/April 2014 Maryland Bar Journal contains Stewart A. Sutton’s article that an attorney who has violated the Maryland Lawyers’ Rules of Professional Conduct should not sue a former client for legal fees owed. The article contains a comprehensive...
by Stewart Sutton | Apr 8, 2014 | Legal Malpractice
The following article was written by my former client as part of a college class on research and survey design: Several years ago, I had the misfortune of being involved in a protracted legal dispute. The entire experience was made infinitely worse by the...