Experienced West Palm Beach probate litigators will tell you litigation can get ugly but that does not excuse an attorney’s duty to courts and co-counsel to act professionally. Furthermore an attorney has a duty not file frivolous claims or petitions. Has an attorney breached that duty while litigating, you may have a claim for fees as a form of sanctions. Want to learn more? Check out this case out of the Fifth District Court of Appeal where attorneys were sanctioned for filing a frivolous lis pendens.
Lis Pendens
- Do you know what a lis pendens is?
- This is a formal document filed in West Palm Beach that alerts potential buyers and creditors of upcoming litigation related to a particular piece of property.
- Filing a lis pendens without proper grounds can spell trouble for West Palm Beach litigators.
Frivolous Claims
- All attorneys in the State of Florida are subject to the Florida Rules of Professional Conduct.
- Those rules are very clear that a party cannot file a frivolous lawsuit.
- How can you tell if a lawsuit is frivolous?
- Parties are not allowed to file cases that have no basis in fact or law.
- What happens when a party files a frivolous claim?
- You may ask your attorney to file an action to ask the court for sanctions, but the court can also do it itself.
- Check out this case out of the Fifth District Court of Appeals where a court demanded sanctions and costs on its own, without the opposing counsel asking.
Massa v. McNutt
- The Fifth District Court of Appeals relased a sua esponte notice of sanctions.
- Sua esponte is a fancy Latin term that means the court acted on its own.
- Attorneys for one side had filed a lis pendens that had no basis in law or fact.
- Although they later apologized the court still found sanctions were appropriate.
- First the attorneys were liable to pay for the costs the other side bore while defending the frivolous action then they were slapped with fines over $1,000!
- Frivolous lawsuits do not pay off in West Palm Beach probate court.
- If you fear the other side may have gone beyond the bounds of a legitimate claim, you may have grounds for sanctions to get those attorney’s fees back.
Want to learn more about sanctions in West Palm Beach?
Check out the entire case by clicking here.