Does 50 Cent Have a Case Against His Lawyers After Bankruptcy?
We sue lawyers. It’s the right thing to do.
50 Cent just settled a law suit against his lawyers for millions. But will he see fifty cents or will it all go to his creditors? He owes millions and he filed bankruptcy before collecting all that money for his lawyers screw up. The malpractice claim against his lawyers was about a business deal related to his bankruptcy. As I’ll explain in a moment, this means that the claim may not belong to him. So his business lawyers screwed up and his creditors win. But does he now have another claim against his bankruptcy lawyers or against the lawyers who sued his business lawyers?
If your lawyer screwed up before you filed bankruptcy, you no longer own your claim against your lawyer. This is because when you file for bankruptcy, a person appointed by the bankruptcy court–called the trustee–now owns everything you owned at the time you file for bankruptcy. Yes, everything, with a few exceptions. So your trustee owns your claim (your lawsuit against your lawyer) for malpractice, as well as any claim against anyone else, such as an auto accident claim.
Ah, but here are some of the tricks to get around this that we have used for our clients:
- If we can convince the judge that some portion of the damages continues after our client filed for bankruptcy there is an exception to the rule. So if you have a permanent injury that you are still suffering from, or if you are still unable to work, we have something to argue about. We do love to argue.
- Another possibility is to have your lawyer tell the trustee that your lawyer needs your full cooperation to win the case–that your lawyer will be able to maximize the recovery if you have some expectation that you will get a piece of the action. This is a tricky one because you have an obligation to cooperate regardless, but it can work.
If you filed for bankruptcy and you have any claim against anyone else that the trustee wants to use to pay your creditors, then ask your bankruptcy lawyer or have the lawyer handling your claim (or call us) to press for some portion of the damages of that claim to go directly to you.
Back to 50 Cent. If his bankruptcy lawyer or his lawyer who was bringing the malpractice claim that just settled did not discuss this issue with him and possibly if they did not get him a piece of this settlement that went directly to him and not to his creditors, then it may be that his lawyers screwed up. If his lawyers screwed up he may have another malpractice claim against his lawyers for some of the money that went to his creditors. The good news is this claim will not be owned by the trustee, and 50 Cent can keep all we get for him. Hmm, not bad. This case is about millions of dollars. Your situation may not be, but I am sure it is about money that would make a difference to you. So 50 Cent can give me a call and we can talk it through. And certainly, if you think your lawyer did not do right by you, call us, WE Can HELP.
