During this past term, the Supreme Court once again fortified the rule that legal malpractice actions are clear exceptions to the entire-controversy doctrine. In the area of legal ethics, the Court gave us two cases of particular help in everyday practice: one dealing with conflict of interest rules and prospective clients, the other addressing conflicts inherent in suing a current client for an outstanding fee.
Entire Controversy Doctrine and Legal Malpractice Actions
In Higgins v. Thurber, 205 N.J. 227 (2011), the Supreme Court reconfirmed that the entire controversy doctrine does not bar a subsequent legal malpractice action. Although a potential legal malpractice claim may have been raised earlier in the proceedings, if the plaintiffs did not have a full and fair opportunity to litigate that malpractice claim, it would be inequitable to bar that claim under the entire controversy doctrine.
