malpractice (mal-prak-tis). An instance of negligence or incompetence on the part of a professional. • To succeed in a malpractice claim, a plaintiff must also prove proximate cause and damages. — Also termed professional negligence. [Cases: Negligence 321. C.J.S. Negligence § 162.] legal malpractice. A lawyer’s failure to render professional services with the skill, prudence, […]
multidisciplinary practice. A fee-sharing association of lawyers and nonlawyers in a firm that delivers both legal and nonlegal services. • Rule 5.4 of the Model Rules of Professional Conduct effectively bars multidisciplinary practice. Under this rule, a lawyer cannot (1) share legal fees with nonlawyers, (2) form a partnership involving the practice of law with
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office practice. A law practice that primarily involves handling matters outside of court, such as negotiating and drafting contracts, preparing wills and trusts, setting up corporations and partnerships, and advising on tax or employment issues.
Gresham’s law. The principle that inferior products or practices tend to displace superior ones. • This economic principle is popularly attributed to Sir Thomas Gresham (1519–1579), even though earlier writers such as Oresme and Copernicus discussed it.
pattern-or-practice case. A lawsuit, often a class action, in which the plaintiff attempts to show that the defendant has systematically engaged in discriminatory activities, esp. by means of policies and procedures. • Typically, such a case involves employment discrimination, housing discrimination, or school segregation. A plaintiff must usu. show that a defendant’s behavior forms a
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academic lawyer. A law professor, usu. one who maintains a law practice on the side.
law-craft, n. The practice of law. “This quest for ever-broader empirical understanding must, of course, be kept under reasonable control in practical law-craft, lest it delay necessary decisions in a continually expanding and pointlessly expensive fact-finding spiral.” Bruce A. Ackerman, Reconstructing American Law 30 (1984).
Law Society of Scotland. A professional organization established by statute in 1949, governing the admission, conduct, and practice of solicitors enrolled to practice in Scotland.
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sharp practice. Unethical action and trickery, esp. by a lawyer. — Also termed (archaically) unhandsome dealing. [Cases: Attorney and Client 32(4). C.J.S. Attorney and Client §§ 45–46.] — sharp practitioner, n.
Law Society. A professional organization in England, chartered in 1845, governing the education, practice, and conduct of articled clerks and solicitors. • A clerk or solicitor must be enrolled with the Law Society to be admitted to the legal profession.