Professional negligence actions on the rise - The Irish Times - Thu, Jun 02, 2011

Professional negligence actions on the rise - The Irish Times - Thu, Jun 02, 2011

Professional negligence actions on the rise
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CAROL COULTER, Legal Affairs Editor

THE ECONOMIC crisis is leading to an increase in professional negligence claims, a legal conference was told yesterday.

Rachel Liston, of Augustus Cullen Law, was speaking at a conference organised by the Professional Negligence Lawyers Association in Dublin.

The number of claims against solicitors had greatly increased, but they were also likely to arise against accountants, architects, valuers, brokers and bankers as mistakes made during the Celtic Tiger period emerge, she said.

“In times of growth and economic prosperity advice given may often be over-optimistic,” she said. “Possible errors go largely unnoticed when things are going well and professional advice is rarely challenged. However, in the light of the current economic climate, professional advice is increasingly being scrutinised and errors are being highlighted.”

Claims relating to commercial and residential property transactions accounted for 70 per cent of those made against solicitors insured with the Solicitors Mutual Defence Fund in 2009, she said. Overall claims against solicitors had doubled within two years.

She advised people to always keep full copies of all professional advice received, whether in writing or electronically, and to make contemporaneous notes of conversations which relate to any professional advice received. She said a list of solicitors who specialised in professional negligence cases was available from the Law Society.

While in medical negligence cases it was difficult to get Irish experts to give evidence against professional colleagues, and lawyers had to go outside Ireland to find medical experts, this was not the case in relation to claims against lawyers. In her experience Irish lawyers were willing to give totally independent detailed objective opinions for plaintiffs against lawyers and other professions, outside the medical profession.

Cases in which she had recently been involved included a large number of employees in a complex class action against pension advisers and actuaries regarding negligent advice on a defined benefit scheme; and a case where a person alleged serious negligence against a bank for its financial advice. The bank invested a personal injury award in a high-risk property portfolio when the plaintiff had given clear instructions that the investment be made carefully and prudently.

Simon Monty QC told the conference that conveyancers are uniquely vulnerable to criminals, and professional criminals prey on conveyancing solicitors with a weakness requiring expenditure beyond their means, like an expensive drug habit. “Some practitioners, out of desperation, can often be persuaded to collude with dubious deals,” he said.

UK figures showed 32 instances of mortgage fraud in every 10,000 transactions, he said. Those attempting mortgage fraud normally misrepresented either the character or means of the applicant or the value of the property, were involved in back-to-back sales or provided false documentation.