A recent Judiciary Law §487 case in the Western District of New York has violently shaken the basic understanding of the elements of this common-law cause of action. We predict a Second Circuit case, and potentially a Certified Question to the New York Court of Appeals. Here are the particulars.

Attorneys are interlaced throughout our country and world. In the United States litigation is rampant, all-encompassing and shot through with discontent. Clients are looking for superior work and fair pricing. Attorneys are interested in getting work, succeeding at that work and being paid. It is both obvious and simple to say that the two sets of desires do not always mesh.