Devoted to Corporate Attorneys, Corporate Lawyers, and Corporate Counsel

The following is not meant to be legal advice.

An attorney working for a law firm should be wary of how his/her name is used in the firm’s stationary or pleadings after he departs.  Usually, according to the California State Bar’s hotline of questions of malpractice, the attorney of record is the law firm.  If anything is wrong with the work, such as in a pleading, the firm would be charged for malpractice.  Then, in turn, the individual attorneys’ names on the pleadings could be charged for liability.  The attorney of record would be liable to clients for malpractice.  An attorney whose name appears on pleadings, but not the actual attorney drafting the work, should make it a matter of record that the person’s name appears on pleadings as representing the clients, but did not participate in drafting the work. 

As to whether one attorney can sign pleadings for another attorney, such question depends on agency.