how do i research prior cases my attorney handled?

You should also use Google to see if you can obtain information about an attorney's track record. Your local law library may also have books with information about prior verdicts and settlements, listed by both attorney and practice area - in California, O'Brien's evaluator contains this information... 0 found this answer helpful

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How do I research case law?

May 05, 2020 · How to Research an Attorney Track Record for Your Legal Issues Google. The easiest way to know if you’ve bagged a legit lawyer is but Googling the lawyer in question. You can Google... Talk To Your Lawyer. It’s not easy to find an attorney, especially if it’s your first time to need advice or... The ...

When do lawyers need to conduct legal research?

Feb 05, 2013 · Before I respond to your inquiry, I must state that we have not spoken, I have not reviewed the relevant documents and facts, and I do not represent you. Therefore, my discussion below is not a legal opinion, but is informational only. Finally, my discussion applies only to issues to which Pennsylvania, Delaware, New Jersey or Federal law ...

How do I find the major cases I'm researching?

Jan 15, 2020 · It is to your benefit to thoroughly research an attorney's disciplinary history. You should take into account any previous discipline taken and the circumstances surrounding the discipline. The following state links will help you learn whether an attorney is currently eligible to practice law or has been disciplined in the past.

How do I find cases that relate to my legal issues?

Mar 27, 2016 · 1. Evaluate the facts. Civil cases typically begin with a dispute, so researching case law begins by spotting the legal issues raised by the facts surrounding the dispute. At this stage, consider everything at face-value, and don't discount anything as not relevant.

How do I research my lawyer?

As much as possible, ask friends, family, or colleagues for lawyer recommendations based on people they trust or have worked with in the past. If you're having trouble getting a personal recommendation, websites like Super Lawyers list the best attorneys by practice area, location, and reputation.Jan 19, 2016

How do I research legal cases?

You can note up your case using:Canadian Legal Information Institute (CanLII) From the home page or within the full text of the decision.LexisAdvance® Quicklaw® Noteup using QuickCITE.WestlawNext Canada Noteup using KeyCite.vLex Justis.

Can I sue a lawyer for lying?

The rules of legal ethics in most states require attorneys to be honest and to be able to do their job at a certain level of competence. If you feel that your legal representative has lied or misled you, or is performing their duties at a level below that of a competent attorney, you may want to file a lawsuit.May 8, 2020

How do you do a legal analysis?

AnalysisFollow the Factors that You Presented in Your Explanation. ... Rule-based reasoning. ... Paragraphing or Subsections. ... Organizing Your Analysis Paragraphs. ... Topic sentence. ... Precedent case law. ... Your client's facts. ... Be Sure to Compare and Contrast.More items...

What are the 5 stages of legal research?

Five Steps of Legal ResearchFormulate a Research Plan.Consult Secondary Sources.Consult Primary Sources. ( a) Expand Primary Law, and (b) Update Primary Law.Analyze & Organize Results.Apr 27, 2021

What are the primary sources of legal research?

The four primary sources are constitutions, statutes, cases, and regulations. These laws and rules are issued by official bodies from the three branches of government.

What should you not say to a lawyer?

Five things not to say to a lawyer (if you want them to take you..."The Judge is biased against me" Is it possible that the Judge is "biased" against you? ... "Everyone is out to get me" ... "It's the principle that counts" ... "I don't have the money to pay you" ... Waiting until after the fact.Jan 15, 2010

What is unethical for a lawyer?

Attorney misconduct may include: conflict of interest, overbilling, refusing to represent a client for political or professional motives, false or misleading statements, knowingly accepting worthless lawsuits, hiding evidence, abandoning a client, failing to disclose all relevant facts, arguing a position while ...

How often should I hear from my attorney?

You should never be afraid or feel like an intrusion to contact your attorney every three weeks or so, or more frequently if there is a lot going on with your health or other matters related to your legal case. There is of course a limit to how much you should be contacting or sharing.Jun 17, 2020

What are the four steps in the legal research process?

The major steps of the research process are detailed below.Step 1: Preliminary Analysis. ... Step 2: Create a Research Plan. ... Step 3: Consult Secondary Sources. ... Step 4: Search for Authority – Statutes, Regulations, and Cases. ... Step 5: Evaluate Your Search Strategy and Results As You Go. ... Step 6: Update & Final Check.6 days ago

What is a legal research question?

Legal research is generally the process of finding an answer to a legal question or checking for legal precedent that can be cited in a brief or at trial. Sometimes, legal research can help determine whether a legal issue is a "case of first impression" that is unregulated or lacks legal precedent.Feb 15, 2017

Michael James Duffy

Many times the best result is an out-of court settlement, where the case does not proceed to trial or a verdict. In some cases, success is determined by limiting damages rather than a decision in favor of the client. There might be various claims, some of which are successes at being avoided while others are all but inevitable.

Patrick X Amoresano

Some attorneys give examples of cases they've handled on their website, and some submit them to www.jvra.com, where you can search the name of your attorney, but you need to bear in mind that only case summaries the lawyer has chosen to submit will be found there...

Christopher Edward Ezold

Before I respond to your inquiry, I must state that we have not spoken, I have not reviewed the relevant documents and facts, and I do not represent you. Therefore, my discussion below is not a legal opinion, but is informational only.

Jeffrey Anthony Skiendziul

If you want to investigate the reputation and acumen of who is representing you then either ask the attorney directly about their past experience, type their name into a google search engine or use this site to review the resume of your attorney.

What is legal research?

Essentially, it means that legal research is the process you use to identify and find the laws—including statutes, regulations, and court opinions—that apply to the facts of your case. In most instances, the purpose of legal research is to find support for a specific legal issue or decision. For example, attorneys must conduct legal research ...

What do you need to know before you start looking for a law?

Before you start looking for laws and court opinions, you first need to define the scope of your legal research project. There are several key questions you can use to help do this.

What is case law?

Case law, which are court opinions/decisions issued by federal or state courts. Statutes, including legislation passed by both the U.S. Congress and state lawmakers. Regulations, including those issued by either federal or state agencies. Constitutions, both federal and state.

What is a headnote in Westlaw?

For example, in Westlaw, most cases contain headnotes that summarize each of the case's important legal issues. These headnotes are also assigned a Key Number based on the topic associated with that legal issue.

Why do we need secondary sources?

Because secondary sources provide you with a thorough overview of legal topics, meaning you don't have to start your research from scratch. After secondary sources, you can move on to primary sources of law.

How to research civil cases?

Civil cases typically begin with a dispute, so researching case law begins by spotting the legal issues raised by the facts surrounding the dispute. At this stage, consider everything at face-value, and don't discount anything as not relevant.

Who is Jennifer Mueller?

Jennifer Mueller is an in-house legal expert at wikiHow. Jennifer reviews, fact-checks, and evaluates wikiHow's legal content to ensure thoroughness and accuracy. She received her JD from Indiana University Maurer School of Law in 2006.

What is a fiduciary relationship?

For example, some parties have a fiduciary relationship, which means one party owes the other a higher standard of care. Financial advisors and home-care providers are examples of professionals who have a fiduciary duty to their clients. A contractual relationship is another type of relationship that may be present.

What is contractual relationship?

A contractual relationship is another type of relationship that may be present. If the parties signed a contract, that document likely defines their relationship and their duties to one another. ...

Is the Supreme Court ruling binding?

A U.S. Supreme Court case is binding on all lower courts, but an appellate court decision is only binding within its own district. Outside of that territory, these cases are referred to as "persuasive" authority, meaning a court in another district may consider them is not bound to follow them.

Joseph Clark Melino

The type of information you seek can be found in the LA Daily Journal, every Friday. It reports the settlements and verdicts of cases tried in the courts of the State of California and other courts. You can subscribe to the paper and get the information from its website...

Shannon Claire Lamb

You should also use Google to see if you can obtain information about an attorney's track record. Your local law library may also have books with information about prior verdicts and settlements, listed by both attorney and practice area - in California, O'Brien's evaluator contains this information...

Tyler Joseph Moore

There will be a lot of information about any lawyer that will not be contained in the court record. The most important thing is to find a lawyer that you can work with, and has a similar idea of how your case should be handled.

Douglas James Pettibone

There is no public record search like this available that I am aware of. ThompsonWest has a research program something in line with what you are talking about. They claim to be able to check out an attorney, the cases filed and the rulings of the court on each case.

When is it relevant to find a case by judge?

It is important to know a few things about your judge before every case. First, you need to know the judge’s familiarity with the context of your case.

Why is it important to have relevant information on judge?

It is important to know the judge’s background on a case so that you can use your time as effectively, both in court and while you are preparing for a case. If a judge has been involved in similar cases, you can provide a brief summary rather than providing extensive background information and spend more time on your argument.

How can I be sure to find the legal case by judge or entity in Westlaw or Westlaw Edge?

To exhaust all legal research options, you may also opt to run a field search on Westlaw or Westlaw Edge. Field searching is a Boolean terms and connectors search that looks for specific terms in a particular part of the document–the title or author fields, for example.

What are the rights of a lawyer?

Some basic rights that you are entitled to include proper and effective communication/correspondence between a client and his or her attorney, the competency of the attorney to know the core knowledge and expertise of a client’s legal issue, the work was completed ethically and the agreement of fees is followed. As a summary, you can and should expect your lawyer to do the following: 1 Give you guidance regarding your legal circumstance 2 Keep you up to date about your case 3 Tell you what he or she thinks will transpire in your case 4 Allow you to make vital judgments concerning your case 5 Give you an assessment about what your case ought to cost 6 Help you in any cost-benefit evaluation that you may need 7 Keep in communication with you 8 Inform you of any changes, delays, or setbacks 9 Give you the information you need to make educated decisions, and 10 Prepare you for your case, including disposition and trial preparation.

Why is it so hard to win a malpractice case?

It is very hard to win a malpractice case because of the amount of evidence you need to prove that the lawyer failed to use the ordinary skill and care that would be used by other lawyers in handling a similar problem or case under similar conditions.

What to do if you don't pay a bill?

If you believe the bill that you’ve received is outside of the context of your agreement, don’t pay it. Ask your lawyer about why the bill is the amount it is and—if you disagree, ask for a reduction. If the lawyer refuses to do so, consider filing for a nonbinding fee arbitration with a state or local bar association. Arbitration allows an outside party to become the neutral decision-maker when regarding bills and finances. It can be binding or nonbinding which allows you to reject the arbitrator’s assessment. Find out more from our local association.

Can you settle a case without a lawyer?

Yes, you can. However, you would have to prove that your lawyer did so without your authorization because the settlement was far less than what you were truly owed and didn’t effectively represent your case or that the lack of communication was systematic.

What are the causes of malpractice?

These basic pieces of malpractice are all due to problems associated with troubled attorney-client relationships. They are normally set off by a lack of communication, dishonestly and incompetence, inadequate legal work, arbitration, and billings.

Can you file a malpractice claim against a lawyer?

While it may be upsetting to not get the compensation you thought you deserved based on your attorney’s comments, you cannot file a malpractice claim against this fallacy. You can, however, get your file from the lawyer and get a second opinion on your case.

How to get a good lawyer to take your case?

“If you want to improve your chances of securing the best lawyer to take your case, you need to prepare before you meet them,” advises attorney Stephen Babcock. “Get your story, facts, and proof together well before your first meeting.” This not only ensures that you understand your own needs, but it helps a good lawyer to ascertain whether he or she can actually help you. “We want the best clients too. Proving you’re organized and reliable helps us.”

Why is it important to approach a lawyer with honesty?

“ Winning cases can be lost because of a client who lies or exaggerates just as easily as because of a lawyer who tells the client what the client wants to hear instead of what is true.” So when dealing with attorneys, don’t just look for honesty—be honest.

What is a potential money pit?

When hiring an attorney, a potential money pit is “expenses” outside of the lawyer’s billable hours. Expenses include everything—copying and faxing costs, hiring expert witnesses, and even traveling via private jet, points out attorney Justin C. Roberts. Some lawyers don’t just pass the charges along; instead, they charge an additional percentage fee. Whatever their method, you need to know it up front so there won’t be any surprises when the bill arrives.

Do good lawyers always find every opportunity to keep a case from being decided by a judge?

“In my experience, a good lawyer always finds every opportunity to keep a case from being decided by a judge, and only relents on trying a case before the bench when all alternatives have been exhausted,” attorney, Jason Cruz says. “If a lawyer suggests they want to try the case in front of a judge, you should definitely speak with another lawyer before proceeding,”

Can you appeal a disability denial?

If you feel helpless when faced with an insurance denial, please know that you might be able to appeal with the help of a qualified lawyer, says David Himelfarb, attorney. Insurance companies routinely deny long-term disability claims, for example, particularly because it’s assumed that most people don’t have access to reputable attorneys to challenge the denial. “This is where intricate knowledge of the legal and insurance process, as well as the right team of experts to prove the claim, can reverse the odds.”

Do most cases settle outside the courtroom?

In choosing your attorney and your plan of action in resolving a dispute, it’s important to consider that despite what you see on television, most cases never see the inside of a courtroom. Typically, they’re settled outside the courtroom because of the time and expense involved, according to attorney Darren Heitner, author of How to Play the Game: What Every Sports Attorney Needs to Know.

When and Why to Fire Your Attorney

In most cases, clients have the ability to fire their attorneys at will. But you should not fire your attorney before giving careful thought to the timing and your reasons for doing so. Consider other possible solutions and the possible ramifications. Before taking any action, ask yourself these questions:

Steps to Take to End Your Lawyer's Representation of Your Case

Once you've definitely decided to change attorneys, there are still a few things you should do before notifying him or her of the change.