Uskup v. Johnson

Illinois Appellate Court
Civil Court
Legal Malpractice
Citation
Case Number: 
2020 IL App (1st) 200330
Decision Date: 
Thursday, December 31, 2020
District: 
1st Dist.
Division/County: 
Cook Co., 4th Div.
Holding: 
Affirmed in part and reversed in part.
Justice: 
GORDON

Plaintiffs filed legal malpractice suit against attorney based on his involvement in drafting trust documents for their deceased father. Plaintiffs alleged that attorney draft trust documents with ambiguous provisions, which caused successor trustee to file a petition to interpret terms of the trust, incurring $300,000 in legal fees. Court properly dismissed complaint as Plaintiffs failed to allege facts showing that alleged malpractice proximately caused Plaintiffs damages. However, dismissal should not have been with prejudice, as Plaintiffs did not have opportunity to amend their complaint to attempt to remedy any deficiencies. (LAMPKIN and REYES, concurring.)