Claims for negligence

If you believe that a lawyer has made a mistake that has caused you financial loss, you should contact the lawyer and ask them to report the matter to us. Lawyers are required to report to us and so we do not take reports from members of the public. Contact information for lawyers is available in the Law Society’s Member Directory.

In your letter to the lawyer, you should explain what you hired them to do, what they did wrong, when this happened, and how that mistake caused you a loss.

There are time limitations that start to run as soon as you know or should have known that the lawyer made a mistake that has caused a loss or will cause a loss to you. If you fail to act promptly, you may not be able to get compensation for the lawyer’s mistake.

We cannot give you legal advice about how to deal with your matter, or how to make your claim against the lawyer.  Where there is coverage, we act for the lawyer.  Even in clear cases where the lawyer has made a mistake, you must act reasonably to protect yourself by minimizing your loss and not making the problem worse.

We urge you to get legal advice and legal information. The Law Society publishes a list of resources for finding a lawyer and getting legal information.

Sometimes it is clear that the lawyer has made a negligent mistake, the mistake has caused a loss, and the amount of the loss can be readily calculated. In these circumstances, we will try to settle your claim.

If we do not agree that there was an error or that the error caused a loss to you, or if we cannot reach an agreement with you about the amount of any settlement, you may have to sue the lawyer and establish your claim in court.