Williams & Connolly should face a nearly $8 million legal malpractice claim from former real estate investor clients who have accused the prominent law firm of negligent legal advice, a U.S. magistrate judge in Brooklyn federal court said on Wednesday.
In a 36-page report, U.S. Magistrate Judge Taryn Merkl recommended the rejection of Washington, D.C.-based Williams & Connolly’s claim that there are no facts in dispute in the case, so the ex-clients should lose.
A decision by U.S. District Judge Diane Gujarati adopting Merkl’s analysis would allow the case to move to a trial.
The law firm is fighting malpractice claims from real estate investor Robert Toussie and his brother tied to a casino development project on Seminole Tribe land in Florida. The firm in 2016 won a $7.8 million judgment for the Toussies that is at the center of the litigation.
The case focuses on legal advice over settling versus trying to enforce a damages award.
Williams & Connolly has “not demonstrated that plaintiff is ‘unable to prove at least one of the essential elements’ of a legal malpractice claim,” Merkl wrote.
A lawyer for Williams & Connolly and a representative from the firm did not immediately respond on Thursday to requests for comment.An attorney for the Toussies also did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
The Toussies in 2020 in New York court sued Williams & Connolly and small law firm Lupkin, which is also a defendant. Merkl’s order recommended the rejection of Lupkin’s bid to dismiss allegations. An attorney for the Lupkin firm did not respond to a message seeking comment.
Merkl said the dispute focuses on whether Williams & Connolly “negligently failed to advise” the Toussies about the challenge of collecting their judgment, as weighed against the possibility of a settlement.
The complaint alleged Williams & Connolly’s advice caused the Toussies to lose a settlement opportunity.
In a court filing, Williams & Connolly said it provided “repeated advice that judgment enforcement was risky,” since there was a chance the Toussies would recover nothing.
The firm said the Toussies have put forward an “entirely false narrative” in their case.
Merkl said she was unable to conclude that evidence offered by Williams & Connolly so far was “advice consistent with the standards of the legal profession about various complex questions.”