On February 19, 2019, the Supreme Court of the United States denied a petition for a writ of certiorari, requesting review of the decision in Bloom v. Aftermath Public Adjusters, Inc., 900 F.3d 516 (5th Cir. Sept. 4, 2018). In Bloom, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit ruled that Texas’s special tolling rule suspending the statute of limitations on legal malpractice claims until completion of the underlying litigation from which the claims arose did not extend to claims against public adjusters. In connection therewith, the Fifth Circuit noted that the application of the special tolling rule was limited to cases involving legal malpractice, and rejected the argument that public adjusters are lawyers in disguise who effectively provided legal services. While the denial of the petition does not reflect the Supreme Court’s views as to the merits of the decision, it does ensure that Bloom remains legal precedent.
February 27, 2019
