Proc. She focuses her practice on business litigation and representing lawyers and law firms. 12 YI-CHING PAO, an individual, 13 Plaintiff, TENTATIVE RULING RE: MOTION TO DISQUALIFY 14 vs. Party: Defendants The Montebello Unified School District and The Montebello Unified School District Board of Education Welcoming 2021 With Thanks for Your Amazing Efforts. Bank v. Adams (2002) 96 Cal.App.4th 315, 327. We have notified your account executive who will contact you shortly. Matters: (1) Motion of Defendants to Disqualify Gersh Derby as Counsel ..t attached as exhibit A to the motion is deemed served on the parties; plaintiffs shall file the first amended complaint, or arrange that the copy of the first amended complaint lodged with the court be filed, on or before January 13, 2012. 395 when new changes related to " are available. App. Motion by defendant Alma Del Pueblo Owners Association Inc. dba The Management Trust to disqualify plaintiffs attorney ~CIV Minute Order - Motion to Disqualify Counsel 01/22/2019 - Motion to Di, FRANCIS BAGNAROL, et al vs. CAROLINA BAGNAROL, et al, Professional Negligence Attorney Malpractice, Julie Pavlina San Giorgio v. Pavlina, Jr., et al. In short, it is widely understood by judges that attorneys now commonly use disqualification motions for purely strategic purposes. Gregori v. Bank of America (1989) 207 Cal.App.3d 300, 301. The defendant argued that the firm could not zealously and ethically develop evidence in [p]laintiffs class action reflecting dishonesty and fault by [the former HR employees] in [the] performance of their human resources job duties and that the conflict of interest was irreconcilable. The defendant also argued that the plaintiffs counsel had received and misused property and privileged documents belonging to the defendant. [W]here an attorneys continued representation threatens an opposing litigant with cognizable injury or would undermine the integrity of the judicial process, the trial court may grant a motion for disqualification, regardless of whether a motion is brought by a present or former client of recused counsel. Kennedy v. Eldridge (2011) 201 Cal.App.4th 1197, 1205. MOVING PARTY: (1) Plaintiffs Robert Warren Jackson and Gregory Bauer; Jeffrey E. Mitchell v. Stratus Media Group, Inc., et al. [W]hile federal courts generally limit standing to bring disqualification motions to clients or former clients, in California where the ethical breach is manifest and glaring and so infects the litigation in which disqualification is sought that it impacts the moving partys interest in a just and lawful determination of [his or] her claims, a nonclient might meet the standing requirements to bring a motion to disqualify based upon a third party conflict of interest or other ethical violation. Kennedy v. Eldridge (2011) 201 Cal.App.4th 1197, 1204 [135 Cal. TENTATIVE RULING: The trial court denied disqualification, agreeing with plaintiffs counsel that [plaintiffs] interests in both actions [were] generally aligned because they all [sought] to hold Eat Club accountable for its unlawful employment practices., The appellate court affirmed, relying on California Rule of Professional Conduct 1.7. In assessing motions to disqualify based on conflicts, Colorado courts also consider (1) a client's preference for a particular counsel, (2) the client's right to confidentiality in communications with his or her attorney, (3) the integrity of the judicial process, and (4) the nature of the particular conflict of interest involved. (Lead Case; Consolidated Action), Jeffrey Mitchell vs Stratus Media Group Inc et al, CLEVE PELL VS THE MONTEBELLO UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT ET AL. Gilbert v. Natl Corp. for Housing Partnerships (1999) 71 Cal.App.4th 1240, 1258, citing Smith, Smith & Kring v. Super. Discussion In ruling on a motion to disqualify, the court should weigh: Mills Land & Water Co. v. Golden West Refining Co. (1986) 186 Cal.App.3d 116, 126. A complaining party who files a motion to disqualify is required to have standing. Resp. (Lira, I) Download PDF. Notice of Joinder The paramount concern must be to preserve public trust in the scrupulous administration of justice and integrity of the bar. Id. Plaintiff Cleve Pell filed suit on October 16, 2017 against Defendants The Montebello Unified School District ..basis for the continuance. 1. 42 MARCH 2009 CALIFORNIA LAWYER trade secrets and unfair competition. As a general rule, a client has the right to replace his or her attorney at virtually any time with or without cause. People v. Ortiz (1990) 51 Cal.3d 975, 983; People v. Courts (1985) 37 Cal.3d 784, 789790; Fracasse v. Brent (1972) 6 Cal.3d 784, 790; Michelle K. v. Super. 7 of Corp. v. SpeeDee Oil Change Systems, Inc. (SpeeDee) (1999) 20 Cal.4th 1135, 114546. VS GOPHER PROTOCOL, INC. We will email you Judge Colleen K. Sterne 4) the Plaintiffs motion to compel the deposition of the Defendant. of Corp. v. SpeeDee Oil Change Systems, Inc. (1999) 20 Cal.4th 1135, 1145; Code Civ. Ct. (2008) 158 Cal.App.4th 1697, 1711. Your credits were successfully purchased. App.). N.D. Cal. Motion to Disqualify Counsel The Defendant requests that the Court order the Plaintiff to serve further responses to his form and special interrogatories. [D]isqualification is a drastic course of action that should not be taken simply out of hypersensitivity to ethical nuances or the appearance of impropriety. Absent evidence of actual knowledge of material confidential information, both prongs of the test must be satisfied before a Court applies the conclusive presumption of knowledge of such information. NO. Ct. (1967) 253 Cal.App.2d 703, 707. 2 try clicking the minimize button instead. 22 I. Under the present rule, if a party is willing to accept less effective counsel because of the attorneys testifying, neither his opponent nor the trial court should be able to deny this choice to the party without a convincing demonstration of detriment to the opponent or injury to the integrity of the judicial process. Reynolds v. Super. Disqualification is only justified where the misconduct will have a continuing effect on judicial proceedings. Sheller v. Super. (3) MOTION TO QUASH OR, IN THE ALTERNATIVE, MODIFY DEPOSITION SUBPOENA; REQUEST FOR SANCTIONS Defendants Motions to Compel Further Responses We have notified your account executive who will contact you shortly. Upon the consent of both client and attorney, filed with the clerk, or entered upon the minutes; 2. v. Wilshire Bank, et al. when new changes related to " are available. 8 (Lead Case; Consolidated Action), Jeffrey Mitchell vs Stratus Media Group Inc et al, CLEVE PELL VS THE MONTEBELLO UNIFIED SCHOOL DISTRICT ET AL. When are two representations substantially related? Defendant, Eugene Sun The motion to disqualify Defendants counsel is DENIED. 389 TENTATIVE RULING: Two recent California cases examine the different standards used to address conflicts of interest in the context of former clients and current clients. Rules of Court, rule 3.1362(d). On December 28, 2011, the court appoin SUBJECT: Motion to Disqualify Counsel 4 Please wait a moment while we load this page. and consolidated case, BACKGROUND Even if all of the requirements are met, the court has discretion to deny an attorneys request to withdraw where such withdrawal would work an injustice or cause undue delay in the proceeding. Mandell v. Super. RWJ ADVANCED MARKETING, LLC ET AL. It appears that Plaintiffs unsuccessful attempt to disqualify opposing counsel was the result of a lack of sufficient factual and legal research and analysis, apparently due in part to the difficulty of obtaining complete records about an alleged attorney-client relationship many years ago. (See Enventure Global Technology Inc. v. Weatherford U.S. LP, U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Texas, Case Number 4:19-cv-02397, Order dated December 11, 2020). Your recipients will receive an email with this envelope shortly and Accessing Verdicts requires a change to your plan. (2) NOTICE OF JOINDER; The court evaluated the motion using California Rules of Professional Conduct 1.9 (regarding conflicts with former clients) and 1.11 (regarding former government attorneys, and referring to Rule 1.9(c)). VS GOPHER PROTOCOL, INC. Last. Rptr. Adding your team is easy in the "Manage Company Users" tab. (California, United States of America) The only remaining Plaintiff is Green Mutual Property & Investment Co. In both instances, the courts concluded that a disqualifying conflict did not exist and denied disqualification. 43. James Li and his firm 4 LiLaw, Inc. (together, Li) represented Epic. I am a litigation attorney and practice in the . 3d 545]. Ct. (2013) 221 Cal.App.4th 409, 449. This matter was last on calendar on 1/6/10. As a result, these motions must be examined carefully to ensure that literalism does not deny the parties substantial justice. City of Santa Barbara v. Super. Your credits were successfully purchased. First (3) MOTION TO QUASH OR, IN THE ALTERNATIVE, MODIFY DEPOSITION SUBPOENA; REQUEST FOR SANCTIONS She concludes with asserting that she does not seek reconsideration of her motion and that father now seeks a preemptive attack on mothers equitable defenses; if father believes he has an enforceable contract as to the mediator he should bring an action Plaintiffs (Jamie Castro) unopposed Motion to Recuse Plaintiffs Counsel, Howard D. Silver (Motion), filed on 5-23-19, is GRANTED on the condition that Plaintiff files proof of proper service on Mr. Silver and all parties in this action before the hearing on this motion. Rules of Court, rule 3.1362(a), (c), (e), ORDER DENYING PLAINTIFF'S MOTION TO RECUSE POWELL PARTNER'S COUNSEL, BROADWAY PROPERTIES LLC VS. WE PARK, INC. et al, ORDER RE: SELLER DEFENDANTS' MOTION TO RECUSE/DISQUALIFY COUNSEL, 2614 BUCHANAN STREET HOMEOWNERS ASSN., et al VS. GREGORY JOHNSON et al, ORDER RE: MOTION TO RECUSE DEFENDANTS COUNSEL MELINDA JAMES NILI, JAMES RYAN VS. OOC INC., A CALIFORNIA CORPORATION (D.B.A. Gilbert v. Natl Corp. for Housing Partnerships (1999) 71 Cal.App.4th 1240, 1258, citing Smith, Smith & Kring v. Super. Id. Nos. Plaintiff Green Mutual Property & In 7. There, the firm representing plaintiffs also represented the defendants former human resources employees as plaintiffs in a separate matter against the same employer defendant. Your recipients will receive an email with this envelope shortly and On the one hand, a court must not hesitate to disqualify an attorney when it is satisfactorily established that he or she wrongfully acquired an unfair advantage that undermines the integrity of the judicial process and will have a continuing effect on the proceedings before the court. On the other hand, it must be kept in mind that disqualification usually imposes a substantial hardship on the disqualified attorneys innocent client, who must bear the monetary and other costs of finding a replacement. 16 and SHYH-CHYI WONG, an individual, and We will email you [D]isqualification motions involve a conflict between the clients right to counsel of their choice and the need to maintain ethical standards of professional responsibility [Citation.] While sanctions for an unsuccessful motion to disqualify are rare, clients (and their counsel) are best protected against the possibility of sanctions for bringing a frivolous motion to disqualify by thoughtfully and carefully researching and analyzing possible conflicts before moving to disqualify.