A lawyer commits malpractice when he/she breaches a duty or contract with a client that, but-for the breach, the damage to the client would not have occurred. Additionally, a lawyer has a duty of competence to clients, which including having legal knowledge and skill begin thorough and preparing adequately for case events. Lastly, under the 6th Amendment, a criminal defendant is entitled to adequate assistance of counsel. Adequate assistance is measured by what a reasonable attorney would do in the circumstances. For counsel to be inadequate enough to justify a new trial, counsel must have drop the ball and this short site must have caused the client some injury that probably would not have occurred had the client had adequate representation.
