The legal profession has long been regarded as a noble field, built on the four pillars of truth, justice, trust and advocacy. However, anyone who has ever had to hire a lawyer knows that trust doesn’t always come easily.
Behind all the courtroom drama and polished suits lies a reality that clients face, which is the unsettling difficulty of trusting the very professional tasked with defending their legal rights. In this blog, we explore the top 5 reasons why trusting lawyers can be problematic and why clients must tread carefully when navigating the legal landscape.
5 Common Reasons Why Lawyers Cannot be Trusted
From overcharging to negligence, here are five common reasons why we cannot trust lawyers.
Abandoning Cases Midway
One of the most alarming and rarely discussed issues of legal representation is that lawyers can resign or withdraw from a case at any given moment, sometimes even without warning. While there is a procedure to follow, like filing a formal application to withdraw, it makes no difference to the client as they are left stranded in the midst of a lawsuit without legal representation.
This sudden abandonment can pose a major challenge, especially when court dates are imminent or filings are due. In most cases, finding a different lawyer is the only way. But they often come with a fresh set of challenges. For example, the new lawyer might need time to understand the current state of affairs, or worse yet, may refuse to take the case after going through the particulars. The ability to walk away from a case with little to no accountability, adds another layer of risk and mistrust to this delicate process.
A few years ago, attorney Kurt R. Bonds was hired by a client for a real estate civil lawsuit in Las Vegas, in which the client sued the property owner for breaching the terms of a property purchase contract. Currently Bonds is the Special Counsel at the Nevada branch of Hall & Evans, but at the time he was the Managing Partner of the law firm Alverson Taylor & Sanders in Las Vegas. According to his online profile, Bonds has practiced in Las Vegas, Nevada since 1997, focusing on litigation and transactional law and named one of Nevada’s top business attorneys in the 2008 Legal Elite issue of the Nevada Business Magazine.
During an initial phone consultation in which the client explained the case and enquired about the legal process and implications, Bonds indicated that the entire legal process would cost around $10k. Trusting Bonds’ expertise in the matter, the client decided to engage Bonds’ services and deposited an initial retainer amount of $5k to start the legal proceedings. However, after the lawsuit started, the client noticed that the costs were running up very quickly and questioned Bonds about it. Bonds then responded that the cost would be a lot higher than the initial amount quoted and even denied that he ever quoted $10k for handling the entire lawsuit. The client informed him that the phone conversation with Bonds was actually on record—something that she usually did for housekeeping purposes, and that it could clearly prove Bonds quoting the cost of just $10k. Shockingly, in response Bonds claimed that there was mistrust and that “the relationship had deteriorated”, as a result of which he decided to withdraw his representation in the lawsuit. There was no consideration of refunding the client for the cost spent either. Not only did the client lose the entire retainer amount of $5k, but Bonds’ sudden withdrawal left the client without any legal representation in the middle of the lawsuit and had severe negative impact on the client’s lawsuit.
Overcharging: The Financial Burden of Legal Representation
One of the first shocks many clients get when hiring a lawyer is the unpredictable and often inflated cost of legal representation. Without a standardised fee structure, lawyers charge exorbitant fees at will. Furthermore, most lawyers work on a retained basis, requiring an upfront lump sum to start working.
The retainer is typically designed to seem reasonable at first. However, hidden behind it are ambiguous charges labelled “miscellaneous” or “administrative”, all of which contribute to mounting expenses. Worse yet! The retainer doesn’t guarantee that the entire matter will be concluded within that budget, causing further financial burden in the long run.
No Guarantee of Winning a Lawsuit
Even after spending a fortune, a lawyer cannot guarantee a win in the courtroom, no matter how seasoned a practitioner they might be. Legal outcomes are inherently uncertain and factors outside any lawyer’s control, from judicial direction to new evidence, can dramatically change the trajectory of a case.
Worse yet! The law emphasises that a lawyer cannot be sued simply because a case was lost. A lawsuit against a lawyer (called a “legal malpractice” claim) requires proving that they acted negligently, which directly harmed the client, causing them to lose a case. So, while the loss of a case is a factor, it’s not the sole determinant. Hence, when a case invariably encounters a hurdle, trust erodes quickly.
Lack of Transparency and Communication
Communication is the cornerstone of trust. Yet many clients find themselves left in the dark after handing over their cases to a lawyer. They might find that the lawyer has become less responsive, dodging their calls and providing minimal updates about progress on the case.
This lack of transparency often extends to paperwork and billing excesses. Some lawyers resist offering written agreements outlining expected costs and services, which can later spiral into disputes about what was promised versus what was delivered. Without clear communication, clients tend to feel deserted and anxious, which is hardly the collaborative relationship one wishes to experience when navigating legal matters.
Conflict of Interest and Negligence
Finally, clients often find that the lawyer’s interests do not align with their own. Conflict of interest arises when a lawyer represents multiple clients with competing goals or when their interests cloud their professional judgment. Negligence is another major pitfall. Clients can discover the hard way that the lawyer missed critical filing deadlines, failed to gather important evidence, or presented a poorly prepared case.
These are all grave mistakes that could cost dearly in court. Even simple administrative errors can derail months, if not years, of hard work. Unfortunately, proving legal negligence is extremely difficult, meaning clients typically suffer the consequences without recourse. When a legal professional treats a case carelessly or with bias, it can lead to severe distrust, leaving a bad aftertaste.
The Silver Lining: Exploring the Steps to Protect Our Legal Interests
While it’s important to acknowledge that not all lawyers engage in these practices discussed above, staying cautious is absolutely essential. Blind trust not only causes financial loss but can also lead to emotional distress and have irreversible legal consequences.
Clients must take several steps to protect themselves. From demanding written agreements outlining all terms to staying informed about case progress and being vigilant about unexpected charges, they must take decisive action religiously to avoid the pitfalls of legal representation. Ultimately, the best defence against a bad legal experience is education and awareness.
