A legal malpractice claim can be disconcerting, time consuming, expensive, and disruptive to a litigation attorney's practice, but there are many simple risk management techniques that can be taken by any litigation practitioner that can significantly help prevent common legal malpractice claims.

Every few years, the American Bar Association's Standing Committee on Lawyers' Professional Liability conducts a survey of legal malpractice claims. According to the most recent survey conducted in 2019, issues related to client relations, which include the failure to follow client's instruction, failure to obtain consent and/or inform the client, and improper withdrawal from representation, account for 16.70% of all legal malpractice claims. As such, the simple act of improving client relations can significantly reduce an attorney's chances of having a legal malpractice claim brought against her.

One of the most effective ways to improve client relations is through the strategic use of engagement letters or retainer agreements. Engagement letters and retainer agreements are useful tools that can significantly help prevent legal malpractice claims. Engagement letters should not be boiler-plate agreements that simply and broadly state the nature of the representation and the fee that will be charged. The most effective engagement letters for the purposes of risk management, client relations, and the reduction of exposure to legal malpractice claims are detailed agreements that define the scope of the representation, define anything specifically known to be outside the scope of the representation, advise the client of the specific costs and fees to be charged, provide the client with a budget and a timeline for the matter, among other issues important to the particular matter. Such detailed engagement letters can significantly help eliminate misunderstandings over these issues, which can otherwise lead to malpractice claims.