Client File .

mountai

My Solicitor has died . He acted for me in several property transactions over the years , and has a file . A new solicitor has taken over his practice . I would like to get my file from this new solicitor . Am I legally entitled to get same ?.

endofrainbow

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058425589/client-file

Have you asked them ?

Claw Hammer

https://www.boards.ie/discussion/2058425589/client-file

You are entitled to your file. Was the current solicitor ever a partner of the one who died?

Peregrinus

A solicitor's file usually contains a mix of things that belong to the client and that belong to the solicitor, and the solicitor is entitled to remove the items that belong to them before handing the file over to the client or (more usually) to the client's new solicitor.

Things that generally belong to the client:

• Anything provided by the client in the first place.
• Correspondence with third parties written or received on the client’s behalf. This includes any advice from counsel obtained for the client.
• Court documents filed or received.
• Evidence, reports, and expert opinions obtained for the client.
• Final versions of transactional documents (e.g. signed contracts, leases, transfers).

Things that generally belong to the solicitor:

• Working papers: Internal notes, drafts, memoranda to self, “thinking notes” and other research that are not paid for by the client and were prepared for the solicitor’s own use.
• Internal correspondence: Letters between partners, trainees, or staff within the firm about the case, unless they were charged as part of the client’s bill.
• Accounting records: Time sheets, internal billing records, etc.

Note that, if there are unpaid costs, the solicitor has a right to withhold the file until they are paid. But nothing in the OP suggests that this is the case here.