Solicitors retained to pursue a client's personal injury claim do not owe a duty of care to the client's spouse or dependants to prosecute the claim with diligence, even where the spouse holds power of attorney and gives instructions. No duty of care can be owed to a deceased's estate, which is not a legal person. However, where a solicitor's negligence in failing to prosecute a personal injury claim with diligence causes the client to lose the chance of recovering damages before death, a cause of action in both tort and contract may vest in the client during his lifetime and survive for the benefit of the estate under s 4(1) of the Law Reform (Miscellaneous Provisions) Act 1941 (WA). The statutory restrictions on estate damages in s 4(2)(d) and (e) are arguably confined to claims against the original tortfeasor.
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