Q: Attorney on probation with BAR and screwing up to say the least. What are the responsibilities of the Court to protect?
Need a Malpractice Lawyer?
A: Almost none. Your first line of defense is you. Find another attorney, and have him help you decide if the matter is ripe for a malpractice suit.
Gerald Barry Dorfman agrees with this answer
A:
The court has no obligation to protect clients from lawyers who get in trouble with the State Bar. The California State Bar is charged with the responsibility to protect the public from attorneys who get in trouble for various reasons. If your attorney has been suspended by the State Bar, it is on you to find another lawyer for your case. The court will not do that for you.
The first thing you should do is get your file from the lawyer and start shopping other lawyers with experience in the kind of case you have pending. One thing you can do is file a document in your case asking the judge to suspend proceedings for a period of time while you find other counsel. You could even possibly contact the lawyer representing the other party and request his/her assistance in communicating with the court, but you must be careful not to discuss anything substantive about your case with the other side's lawyers. Often times, however, opposing counsel might be helpful because they also have a duty to the court and their own client to assist at times like this.
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