A Houston energy company filed a legal malpractice lawsuit alleging that its former lawyer dropped it as a client a week before an important arbitration hearing because he was too busy.

The company later discovered that its attorney had “disrespected” the arbitration panel, which ultimately issued a $3.8 million award against it after it located new counsel, according to the original petition in T-Rex Engineering and Construction v. Woods.

The background to the dispute, according to the March 20 petition filed in Harris County district court, is as follows.