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Chuck Yeager Legal Malpractice Trial

On Behalf of | May 2, 2014 | Uncategorized |

Chuck Yeager and his wife former actress Victoria Scott D’Angelo are suing their attorneys for legal malpractice, but with an outstanding bill to the legal firm of $270,000. Without a signed agreement of representation, will monthly legal bills and statements constitute a contract?

April 29, 2014.  Fresno Bee online at appeal-democrat.com.

FRESNO — A civil trial involving legendary Gen. Charles “Chuck” Yeager began Monday with the first man to break the sound barrier and his wife facing accusations of breaching a contract with a Fresno law firm.

The Yeagers, who live in Penn Valley, fired back, accusing the law firm of Wild, Carter and Tipton of committing legal malpractice.

Whether the Yeagers will be able to prove their allegations in Fresno County Superior Court is still up in the air.

On the first day of trial, Judge Kristi Culver Kapetan reserved a ruling on whether she or a jury will decide the case, but her tentative ruling was to let a jury decide it.

The judge also wasn’t sure if the Yeagers had enough admissible evidence to move forward with their malpractice complaint.

To determine if the couple’s complaint is legitimate, Kapetan allowed a legal malpractice expert hired by the Yeagers to give a deposition today. Once the deposition is completed, both sides will return to court Wednesday and argue whether the complaint is valid.

Yeager, 91, spent Monday morning listening to the complex legal arguments, but soon tired. Because attorney Michael Thomas stepped in Monday to defend the general, Yeager didn’t have to stick around for the afternoon session. His 55-year-old wife, Victoria Yeager, had to remain in court because she is representing herself.

Both sides agree Wild, Carter & Tipton’s breach of contract case against the Yeagers will go forward.

The law firm represented Chuck and Victoria Yeager in seven suits before ending their relationship in either August or September of 2008. The firm says the Yeagers have an unpaid bill of nearly $270,000.

The Yeagers, however, contend they owe nothing because they thought the firm was doing the work for free. They also said they never signed a contact with Wild, Carter & Tipton to represent them.

But attorneys Marshall Whitney and Mandy Jeffcoach, who represent Wild, Carter & Tipton, contend in court papers that, even without a written contract, the firm is entitled to be paid for its services, especially since it provided “the Yeagers with monthly billing statements that evidence their hourly rate, the time expended and a description of their work performed.”


A series of lawsuits

Chuck Yeager, who shot down German planes in World War II, was just launching his life as an American hero when he married his first wife, Glennis, in 1945. Chuck and Glennis were married 45 years until her death in 1990. He met actress Victoria Scott D’Angelo on a hiking trail in Grass Valley in 2000, and they married in August 2003.

Since his marriage, the General, as he is referred to in court papers, has been thrust into nearly two dozen lawsuits involving a variety of opponents, including his own children. He also has gone through more than 20 attorneys in a span of less than seven years, including 10 lawyers to fight Wild, Carter & Tipton.

“Prior to that, Gen. Yeager had no real exposure to litigation,” Whitney and Jeffcoach say in court papers, which note Victoria Yeager was involved in more than 30 lawsuits before marrying Yeager.

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He actually persuaded me not to settle because he believed that we had a great case. So we took the case to trial and he fought like crazy for me. And we won! It was a really good experience —well, as much as it can be for a lawsuit — and I’m very happy I went with them. I’ve been really blessed to have him as my attorney, so I recommend him whenever I can.”

— Yelp.com review by Daniel M.

See What Other Clients Say

He actually persuaded me not to settle because he believed that we had a great case. So we took the case to trial and he fought like crazy for me. And we won! It was a really good experience —well, as much as it can be for a lawsuit — and I’m very happy I went with them. I’ve been really blessed to have him as my attorney, so I recommend him whenever I can.”

— Yelp.com review by Daniel M.

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