Professional Negligence
Solicitors
What is Professional Negligence?
Professional negligence is a breach of the duty of care, which professionals owe to their clients, that causes a financial loss or possibly a loss of opportunity. Our team has extensive experience in dealing with a wide variety of claims against Solicitors, Barristers, Architects, Engineers, Surveyors, Accountants, and other advisors giving advice in a professional capacity. Most professionals will have insurance cover in place to deal with claims of this nature.
How to Prove Professional Negligence
In order to successfully pursue a claim for professional negligence it is necessary to firstly obtain an expert report which identifies if there was negligence or substandard advice which caused you to suffer a financial loss.
Financial Loss
In some instances, the financial losses arising will be relatively straightforward to quantify, for example, where a defect needs to be fixed by engaging another professional. In other cases, you may suffer a loss of value to your property or incur ongoing financial losses which may need to be quantified into the future. In both scenarios, we ensure that your financial losses are fully investigated and quantified by way of obtaining reports from relevant experts.
How Long do I have to take a Professional Negligence Claim?
In general, the time limit for issuing a professional negligence claim is within six years of the date on which the negligence occurred. If you are unsure about whether this time limit has passed or not, we will be happy to advise you.
Types of Professional Negligence Claims
Claims Against Solicitors
We frequently deal with claims against Solicitors which unfortunately arise because of a missed Statute date. In this type of scenario, the Solicitor in question may have allowed a claim to become Statute barred, thereby causing their client to suffer a financial loss. We will investigate the standard of care afforded to you in such a scenario and advise you as to whether you may have a claim for professional negligence.
We also deal with claims against Solicitors arising from many areas of negligence, including a mistake in the drafting of a will, mistake in the administration of an estate, mistake in property related transactions, mistake in missing the Statute date or allowing a claim to become Statute barred or giving inadequate advice prior to settling a claim.
Claims Against Engineers, Architects and Surveyors
Negligent advice from an Engineer or Architect can lead to significant structural failure, building works being delayed and can even mean a project has to be completely stopped, thereby leading to financial losses.
We also deal with claims against Building Surveyors arising out of a failure to identify building defects prior to the purchase of the surveyed property.
We understand that these types of claims can cause significant stress and financial loss and we are there to assist you and to ensure that your claim progresses as quickly as possible.
Claims Against Accountants and Tax Advisors
Professional negligence claims against Accountants and Tax Advisors can be quite complex, therefore it is important that you seek advice from Solicitors who specialise in this type of work. Accounting negligence cases generally arise as a result of incorrect tax advice, failing to advise a client about their VAT obligations, negligent audits, inaccurate valuation of company assets, failing to prepare account documents, missing accounting deadlines, inadequate advice concerning tax reliefs/exemptions, and undervaluation of companies or the disposal of shares.
These types of professional errors can result in significant financial losses particularly given that considerable fines and penalties can be imposed if there is a failure to fully account to the Revenue Commissioners. If you are concerned about the standard of professional care afforded to you by your Accountant or Tax Advisor, then we will be happy to discuss the matter with you.
