A single justice of the Supreme Judicial Court (“SJC”), located in Boston, Massachusetts, has entered an order indefinitely suspending of an attorney after finding that he had misused client funds. In the matter of Michael J. Fenton, an attorney was hired as counsel for the executor of an estate, including…
A single justice of the Supreme Judicial Court (“SJC”) of Massachusetts has entered a judgment suspending a Boston attorney, after finding that he had misappropriated client funds. In the matter of Thomas Eisenstadt, a lawyer received settlement payments on behalf of two clients in unrelated matters and kept the money…
A single justice of the Supreme Judicial Court (“SJC”), has entered a judgment suspending a Boston attorney for a period of three months, after finding that he violated the Massachusetts Rules of Professional Conduct. In the matter of Bernard Kansky, a lawyer represented three of five siblings, who were all…
The Massachusetts Court of Appeals, located in Boston, affirmed summary judgment in favor of an attorney in a legal malpractice case. In Scanlon v. Dukess, a real estate investor sold a property in Brockton, Massachusetts and sought to purchase a replacement property in order to defer capital gains tax on…
The Supreme Judicial Court (“SJC”) in Boston, Massachusetts has entered a judgment of disbarment of a Massachusetts attorney, who practiced law in Rhode Island without a license and misused client funds. In the matter of David R. Ardito, a lawyer had a longstanding friendship with a married couple from Rhode…
The Massachusetts Appeals Court, which is located in Boston, has affirmed the dismissal of a legal malpractice action and summary judgment of a related quantum meruit claim. A woman provided care to her stepfather during the last years of his life. She had hoped that she and her children would…
The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court (“SJC”), has suspended an attorney for four years after finding that he charged excessive legal fees in violation of Mass. R. Prof. C. 1.5(a). The Committee for Public Counsel Services (“CPCS”)is headquartered in Boston, but hires private attorneys to provide free legal services to indigent…
In Massachusetts, professional negligence claims against an attorney must be filed within three years (M.G.L. c. 260 § 4). Fraud claims also have a three year statute of limitations (M.G.L. c. 260 § 2A). However, these periods do not begin to run until a client’s discovery of the actionable conduct.…
The attorney, provides the following summary of a recent legal ethics decision: The Supreme Court of Arkansas has affirmed a contempt order issued against an attorney. In Benca v. Benton County, an attorney was representing a client at oral argument of a motion to compel discovery. During the proceedings, the…
In all jurisdictions, including Massachusetts, a plaintiff cannot maintain a malpractice claim against an attorney unless an attorney-client relationship exists. Spinner v. Nutt, 417 Mass. 549 (1994). Lawyers hired to advise trustees of trusts owe a duty of care to beneficiaries and other third parties only in rare circumstances. Id.…