Imagine a world where anyone could file a claim against someone else at any point in time. Thousands of people would suffer years of sleepless nights waiting for the knock on their door from a courier bringing the news that something they thought was buried had resurfaced.
Hence, justice has a time limit. If you want to file a claim, you need to do so within the state’s statute of limitations. Once you file a claim, each party then needs to take the required steps within the relevant time frames laid out.
Failure to meet the schedule can lead to a legal malpractice claim
If you hired an attorney to represent you, and they did not hand the paperwork in on time, it could lead to a judge dismissing your case altogether. That could mean you forfeit the right to justice or compensation or damages.
The reverse could happen if someone files a lawsuit against you. If your attorney is late with any of the steps needed to defend you, the judge may decide to side with the other party at great cost to you.
Deadlines remain crucial if you wish to bring a claim against the attorney that failed you
As one recent case showed, attorneys are also entitled to sleep at night without fearing their past will come back to haunt them. A judge agreed that a case of legal malpractice should not go to trial because the person filing did so outside the statute of limitations.
If you believe you have cause to file a legal malpractice claim, the sooner you get legal advice, the more time you have to prepare without fearing you will miss a deadline.