Nelson v. Boeing Commercial

McCONNELL, Circuit Judge.

The general rule in civil cases is that the ineffective assistance of counsel is not a basis for appeal or retrial. Mac-Cuish v. United States, 844 F.2d 733, 735 (10th Cir.1988). If a client’s chosen counsel performs below professionally acceptable standards, with adverse effects on the client’s case, the client’s remedy is not reversal, but rather a legal malpractice lawsuit against the deficient attorney. Id. at 735-36; Link v. Wabash R.R. Co., 370 U.S. 626, 634 n. 10, 82 S.Ct. 1386, 8 L.Ed.2d 734 (1962). Recognizing this rule, Plaintiff-Appellant Michael J. Nelson…