Author: Seth L. Laver

The Superior Court of Pennsylvania recently affirmed the summary judgment dismissal of a multi-million-dollar legal malpractice case against a Pennsylvania attorney defended by Goldberg Segalla.

The victory — secured by partner Seth Laver with assistance from partner Daniel Strick and attorney Joseph Ross — was particularly significant in that it involved complex, underlying issues and was heard in the often-difficult Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas.

The dispute stemmed from an injury suffered by a non-party who for 14 years was employed as a hotel waiter …

Uh oh. Surveyed legal malpractice insurance carriers pointed to sympathetic jurors and aversion to trying cases as possible explanations for an “all-time high” in claims payouts despite similar year-over-year volume. According to data compiled by Ames & Gough, factors such as runaway verdicts and litigation financing have contributed to the rise in settlements. Those factors are among several accounting for a concept most readers are undoubtedly all too familiar with: social inflation, the increase of claims costs beyond the economic inflation so often in the …

That’s the question on the minds of many in the legal malpractice community after a noteworthy decision in Pennsylvania.  

It’s probably reasonable to assume — at least from the defense standpoint — that the success rate of a statute of limitations (SOL) defense to a legal malpractice claim is virtually zero. This may be more so in some jurisdictions, especially those that permit a litigant to pursue tort as well as a breach of contract theory in these scenarios.

A dual theory approach may …