A legal practitioner retained to provide an opinion on the merits of litigation owes a duty to familiarise themselves fully with their instructions, and a failure to read or take into account material parts of the brief may found a cause of action in negligence. A delay of two years and seven months in delivering a legal opinion is prima facie unreasonable. A claim for breach of fiduciary duty based on conflict of interest is equitable in nature and falls outside the Limitation Act 1935 (WA), whereas claims for fraudulent misrepresentation and defamation are tortious and subject to the six-year limitation period under s 38(1)(c)(vi). Following Astley v Antitrust Ltd, the liability of a solicitor remains a concurrent liability in contract and in tort.
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