Perspective
Feb. 20, 2013
Bury your exposure: malpractice claims and estate planning
In California, as in other jurisdictions, the traditional rule was that an attorney could be held liable for professional negligence only to his or her own client - no so when it comes to estate planning. By Jason E. Fellner and Allen Kuo
Barring a few exceptions, a rule in legal malpractice is that a nonclient cannot sue an attorney for malpractice based upon the absence of strict privity. This rule makes sense because attorneys owe no professional duty of care to nonclients. However, estate planning attorneys are an exception to this general rule. Since the state Supreme Court handed down Lucas v. Hamm, 56 Cal. 2d 583 (1961), which essentiall...
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