NJ Supreme Court recognizes a malpractice claim based on dissatisfaction with a settlement

Last week, the New Jersey Supreme Court allowed a legal malpractice suit to go forward, in a ruling that clarified the circumstances in which clients who become disenchanted with settlements can sue their attorneys for negligence. The case is called Guido v. Duane Morris. Holding that "the existence of a prior settlement is not a bar to the prosecution of a legal malpractice claim" arising from the settlement. The court attempts to resolve the tension between the two leading precedents on the subject: Ziegelheim v. Apollo, 128 N.J. 250 (1992), which allowed a malpractice suit, and Puder v. Buechel, 183 N.J. 428 (2005), which did not. For more on this story go to Law.com.