Can You Sue Your Lawyer for Settling Without Your Permission?

When you hire a lawyer, you expect them to act in your best interest and include you in every major decision about your case, especially when it comes to settling. A settlement can end your legal dispute permanently and have major financial or legal consequences. That’s why no attorney has the right to agree to a settlement without your full knowledge and explicit permission.

If your lawyer settled your case without your consent, you may feel betrayed, confused, and powerless. But you’re not without options. In many cases, an unauthorized settlement could be grounds for a legal malpractice lawsuit. At Cimino Law Office, we help clients throughout Colorado take action when their lawyers act unethically or irresponsibly.

Your Right to Make Settlement Decisions

According to the Colorado Rules of Professional Conduct and the ethical standards adopted nationwide, the decision to settle a case belongs to the client, not the attorney. Rule 1.2(a) states that a lawyer must abide by a client’s decision to settle and cannot take that step without informed consent.

This means your attorney is legally and ethically required to:

• Present all settlement offers to you in a timely manner
• Fully explain the terms and implications of the settlement
• Give you time to consider your options
• Obtain your express approval before accepting or rejecting any offer

Settling without your permission is a serious breach of trust and potentially a breach of duty. If this happened to you, your legal rights may have been compromised without your knowledge or approval.

Why Unauthorized Settlements Can Constitute Legal Malpractice

Legal malpractice occurs when an attorney violates the standard of care expected in the profession, and that violation causes measurable harm to the client. If your attorney settled your case without authorization and you suffered a financial loss or gave up legal rights as a result, that conduct may meet the criteria for malpractice.

Here are some examples of how unauthorized settlements can cause serious damage:

• Underpaid Settlements: Your attorney accepts a lowball offer without giving you the chance to negotiate a better deal.
• Unfavorable Terms: You’re stuck with settlement conditions you never agreed to, such as confidentiality clauses or waiving your right to sue another party.
• Dismissed Legal Rights: The settlement ends your case and prevents you from continuing to pursue compensation or justice through the courts.

If any of these outcomes occurred and your lawyer did not consult you before finalizing the deal, it’s worth having your case reviewed by an attorney who focuses on legal malpractice.

What You Must Prove in a Malpractice Case

To succeed in a legal malpractice claim based on unauthorized settlement, you must establish four key elements:

• Attorney-Client Relationship: There must be a clear professional relationship between you and the attorney who settled your case.
• Breach of Duty: The lawyer acted without your consent, violating ethical and professional responsibilities.
• Causation: The unauthorized settlement directly harmed you, either financially or by terminating legal rights you wished to pursue.
• Damages: You must have suffered actual harm, such as lost compensation or legal disadvantages, as a result of the unauthorized settlement.

Proving these elements usually requires documentation, such as communications between you and your lawyer, copies of the settlement agreement, and expert testimony from other attorneys who can confirm the breach of professional standards.

Can a Settlement Be Reversed?

In some cases, courts may void a settlement that was agreed to without the client’s permission, but this depends on how far the process has gone. If the other side relied on the agreement and the settlement has already been enforced, it may be too late to undo the damage. That’s why it’s critical to speak with a legal malpractice attorney as soon as you discover what happened.

Even if the settlement can’t be undone, you may still have the right to pursue a malpractice claim against your former attorney for the losses their actions caused.

What to Do If This Happened to You

If you believe your lawyer settled your case without your permission, take the following steps immediately:

• Request all case records and communications from your former attorney
• Get a copy of the settlement agreement
• Document what you were told (or not told) at the time of the settlement
• Contact a legal malpractice attorney to evaluate your options

At Cimino Law Office, we offer a confidential consultation to help you determine whether your case qualifies as malpractice and what compensation you may be entitled to pursue.

You Deserve to Be In Control of Your Case

When you hire a lawyer, you're trusting them to represent you, not to make life-altering decisions behind your back. If your attorney settled your case without your permission, they violated your trust and your legal rights. That’s not just unethical; it may be grounds for legal action.

Contact Cimino Law Office today to discuss your situation. We’re here to help you hold negligent attorneys accountable and pursue the compensation you deserve.