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Quandary, small claim for now

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learning

Junior Member
What is the name of your state? Maryland

I hired an attorney. As a result of his inaction, I consulted another and she agreed his inaction was unacceptable and agreed to represent me, however, indicated she would have to use another attorney to assist in addition to a 2nd attorney on her staff. We verbally agreed to that provided I have one entity to pay, one person responsible for the case. An agreement was signed stating that I would pay the firm, the other attorneys were listed with their hourly rates and it was specified that any proceedings to collect would be held in the courts of a specific county. The firm sent a bill, the other attorney sent a separate bill. Issue 1. The attorney stated as being the firm filed a small claim in the listed county and it was settled (I was lazy) The 2nd attorney has filed a 2nd small claim in another county. Issue 2. My motion to dismiss addresses 1) the jurisdictional issue, 2)the violation of the basic intent of the contract, 3) I need a specific citation addressing the fact that the aggregate of the separate claims exceeds the limits of small claims, 4) I am requesting sanctions as other relief in addition to the dismissal for an egregious act against the defendant for violating the very intent of the law and violations of the code of conduct. Any opinions and a citation would be appreciated
 


dcatz

Senior Member
Issue: You don't memtion that attorney #1 was substituted out in favor of #2.

Issue: You don't memtion that attorney #1 was fully paid, even if he/she was substituted out.

Issue: Two different claims from two different attorneys for unpaid services exceeds Small Claims jurisdiction in the aggregate. Irrelevant.

Issue: Motion to dismiss addresses 1) the jurisdictional issue, 2)the violation of the basic intent of the contract. What?!

Issue: I am requesting sanctions as other relief in addition to the dismissal for an egregious act against the defendant for violating the very intent of the law and violations of the code of conduct. What?!

Any opinions . . . would be appreciated.

Response: On the information posted, you have problems.
 

learning

Junior Member
dcatz said:
Issue: You don't memtion that attorney #1 was substituted out in favor of #2.

Issue: You don't memtion that attorney #1 was fully paid, even if he/she was substituted out.
The original attorney was substituted, paid and does not enter the picture, he was brought into the discussion only to corroborate the intent of the written agreement

Issue: Two different claims from two different attorneys for unpaid services exceeds Small Claims jurisdiction in the aggregate. Irrelevant.
Relevant-One of the attorneys was the firm, the 2nd was listed as a member of the firm-The attorneys worked together on the case. The written agreement applied to both attorneys. Rather than file one claim in district court, they divided the claim into two seperate claims to avoid the rigors of district court. An illegal act.

Issue: Motion to dismiss addresses 1) the jurisdictional issue, 2)the violation of the basic intent of the contract. What?!
1)The agreement stated that any proceeding resulting from attempting to collect the fee would be held in a specified county. The 2nd claim was filed in a county other than specified.

2)The intent of the agreement was to have one entity to pay (the firm). Seperate bills violated the intent.

Issue: I am considering requesting sanctions as other relief in addition to the dismissal for an egregious act against the defendant for violating the very intent of the law and violations of the code of conduct. What?!
The attorney's:

1) violated a clause of the contract. (Filing in wrong county)
2) violated the intent of the contract. (seperate bills). (Common business law indicates that violation of the intent negates the contract)
3) abused the court system by filing seperate claims in small claims court rather than one claim in district court as is deemed appropriate by the contract. (The sum of the seperate claims exceeds the limits of small claims courts>denies me the right to discovery) The attorneys have violated the code of conduct.

These are the issues I am choosing to address in the motion to dismiss with the idea of demurrer in mind, another issue I am trying to figure out how to word. There are other issues, that seem to make the petition to dismiss burdensome, such as why the 2nd attorney did not substantiate her claim by producing the written agreement- she couldn't, 1)wrong county, 2) obvious violation of the intent of the agreement. There is an issue as to service of summons-no attempt was made at serving at my known residence, rather was served by a process server on a known mailing address only-due diligence requires that a copy be mailed to a mailing address. That is required of the attorney, not of the process server). There are incidences of neglect to act diligently in performing their job, of failing to return phone calls, charging for services specifically told not to do, failing to perform specific services requested. These are issues to be addressed in a complaint, not a defense. The idea of sanctions seems valid and may stave them from further prosecution, until I can find the info I need to file a complaint. I am not an attorney, realize the implications of hiring an attorney to sue an attorney

Response: On the information posted, you have problems.
That's why I'm here. Appreciate your interest
 
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dcatz

Senior Member
Hiring attorneys to sue attorneys happens all the time.

Beyond that, you may not find the expression of interest as satisfying as you would like.

Unless a fatal flaw is evident on the face of the Complaint, a demurrer is seldom sustained without leave to amend (fix). Assuming that you prevail on the demurrer (and I have my doubts but admittedly still don't understand the factual context well enough - and it's a big forum, with other opinions abounding), I would be surprised if, on the facts posted, you were successful in getting rid of all of the litigation, muchless get sanctions.

Maybe that's just a function of never having seen your retainer agreement(s) and still being unclear on exactly what went on or what you feel should have gone on.

Good luck in your efforts.
 

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