July 19, 2019: KGPL attorneys Alex Diaz and Chris Fraga prevailed in demonstrating to the Court that a legal malpractice claim brought by numerous beneficiaries of a will was a sham pleading.
The case stems from an underlying guardianship and the ultimate death of local Miami artist Purvis Young. During the guardianship, several attorneys rendered services for the benefit of Mr. Young. Ultimately, despite many efforts to sell art to compensate the various lawyers, the Guardianship Court determined that the lawyers ought to satisfy the amounts owed to them with the decedent’s art.
The beneficiaries of the will filed a civil action against the lawyers contending that the lawyers had over-compensated themselves with art in excess of the amounts owed to them. The firm prevailed in demonstrating that the very claims brought in the civil action had previously been unsuccessfully raised and adjudicated by the underlying Guardianship Court, thus rendering the plaintiffs’ claims subject to collateral estoppel. The Court also favorably determined entitlement to attorneys’ fees for the firm’s clients for having to defend what the Court determined were frivolous claims