New Jersey Legal Malpractice Lawyers for Missed Deadlines

Respected New Jersey Lawyers Represent Clients Harmed by a Lawyer’s Missing a Deadline

Your lawyer not only has to understand the substantive area of law involved in your case, but also has to know about the procedural requirements that must be satisfied to win.  The New Jersey legal system imposes countless deadlines upon lawyers. Missing a deadline can have any number of negative consequences for the client—and can even result in the client’s case being dismissed entirely.

At Team Law, our top-rated legal malpractice lawyers know how much trust you have placed in your lawyer.  Even if your lawyer seems qualified and competent, we can help you understand the far-reaching consequences that a missed deadline can have in your specific case.  When missing a deadline causes you to lose out on much needed compensation, our lawyers are here to protect your rights.

Missing a deadline can seem like a minor offense in the grand scheme of things.  However, when your lawyer misses a deadline and you are unable to advance an important argument or pursue a vital strategy, you could lose the case entirely because of the missed deadline.

Speaking with a qualified lawyer is the first step in understanding whether a missed deadline can give you the right to pursue a claim for legal malpractice.  To learn more about your rights and Team Law’s extensive experience in this area, call or contact us online to schedule a free case review with our talented New Jersey legal malpractice lawyers.

Examples of Important Deadlines in New Jersey

While the New Jersey legal system imposes deadlines for almost every procedural aspect of your case, the most important deadline of all is called the statute of limitations.  If your lawyer misses this deadline, you will be entirely barred from pursuing your case—even if you would have clearly won. For example, relevant statutes of limitations include:

• The deadline for filing a personal injury claim is two years from the date of the accident, unless an exception applies,
• The deadline for filing a medical malpractice claim is two years from the date the harm occurred, although this deadline can be extended if the victim did not know what caused the harm,
• The deadline for filing a breach of fiduciary duty claim is generally six years for economic losses, but the deadline is shortened to two years for cases involving physical or emotional harm.

Some examples of important deadlines that your lawyer should never miss include:

• An affidavit of merit in a medical malpractice or other professional malpractice lawsuit must be filed within 60 days of when the defendant files an answer,
• To pursue compensation for injuries sustained on public property, the lawyer must file a notice of tort claims against that entity within 90 days of the accident,
• The deadlines for filing a workers’ compensation claim, which include a 14-day window and a firm 90-day window for notifying the employer.

In addition to these generally applicable deadlines, the court (or even an arbitrator) may set various deadlines specific to your case, such as:

• A deadline for identifying expert witnesses,
• A deadline for finishing the discovery process,
• A deadline for providing the defendant with interrogatories.

Deadlines for filing motions, briefs and even statements with the court must be met in order to get the best possible outcome for the client.  If you have learned that your lawyer missed a deadline in the New Jersey courts, call Team Law today for a free case evaluation.

Trusted Legal Malpractice Lawyers Fight to Help Victims of Lawyers Who Have Missed Deadlines in New Jersey

Filing a claim for legal malpractice based on missing a deadline can be complicated even though it is obvious that the lawyer missed the deadline.  You need a lawyer with substantial experience by your side to build a strong case. Importantly, unless it was the statute of limitations that was missed, our lawyers will also have to establish that you suffered a loss because of the missed deadline.  Our lawyers can do this by:

• Showing that evidence excluded because of a missed deadline would have caused likely the jury to award a larger compensation package,
• Proving that an expert who was excluded would have refuted the defendant’s evidence that damaged your case,
• Establishing that a reasonable judge would have granted a motion to exclude evidence, had the deadline for filing the motion not been missed.

Legal malpractice claims are particularly complicated by a number of factors—not the least of which is the fact that you are challenging a lawyer who is trained in justifying a position.  Our lawyers are here to level the playing field and make sure your lawyer’s negligence is not left unchecked. 

Lawyer Missed a Deadline?  Call our Skilled NJ Legal Malpractice Lawyers at Team Law to Learn About Your Rights

Your lawyer may try to minimize the fallout of missing a deadline by telling you that all lawyers miss deadlines, or that it isn’t a problem in your case.  Unfortunately, that may not be the truth. Missing a deadline—even if you are permitted to pursue your case—can negatively impact how successful your outcome is. 

If your lawyer has missed a deadline while handling your case, call today to speak with our knowledgeable New Jersey legal malpractice lawyers at Team Law.  We can explain how the specific missed deadline may have impacted your case and help you evaluate options for moving forward.

Frequently Asked Questions About Legal Malpractice Claims Based on Missing a Deadline in New Jersey