On October 30, 2018, the First Department issued a decision in Brean Murray, Carret & Co. v. Morrison & Foerster LLP, 2018 NY Slip Op. 07238, affirming the dismissal of a legal malpractice claim as time-barred, explaining: The malpractice claim was properly dismissed as time-barred, and the doctrine of equitable estoppel will not toll a limitations… Read more »
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Posts Categorized: Law Firms and Professional Ethics
Documents Submitted by Law Firm to Show Lack of Relationship Not Documentary Evidence Sufficient to Justify Dismissal
On August 22, 2018, The Second Department issued a decision in First Choice Plumbing Corp. v. Miller Law Offs., PLLC, 2018 NY Slip Op. 05825, holding that documents submitted by a law firm to show that it had not been engaged by the plaintiff were not documentary evidence sufficient to justify dismissal, explaining: The defendant… Read more »
Judiciary Law Sec. 487 Claim Dismissed for Failure to Allege Intent to Deceive
On August 15, 2018, the Second Department issued a decision in Bill Birds, Inc. v. Stein Law Firm, P.C., 2018 NY Slip Op. 05743, dismissing a Judiciary Law Section 487 claim for failure to allege intent to deceive, explaining: Contrary to the defendants’ contention, the cause of action alleging a violation of Judiciary Law §… Read more »
Court Refuses to Enforce Attorney Fee-Sharing Agreement
On July 5, 2018, the Second Department issued a decision in Ballan v. Sirota, 2018 NY Slip Op. 05014, affirming the dismissal of a claim to enforce an attorney fee-sharing agreement, explaining: Judiciary Law § 491 prohibits any person, partnership, or corporation from sharing any fee or compensation charged or received by an attorney-at-law, in… Read more »
Continuous Representation Doctrine Applies Only to Representations Specifically Related to the Malpractice Claim
On April 12, 2018, the First Department issued a decision in Davis v. Cohen & Gresser, LLP, 2018 NY Slip Op. 02542, affirming the dismissal of a legal malpractice claim as time-barred because the continuous representation doctrine does not apply to representations unrelated to the malpractice claim, explaining: Davis cannot rely on the continuous representation… Read more »
Counsel Disqualified Because of Representation in Prior Related Action
On March 1, 2018, Justice Ash of the Kings County Commercial Division issued a decision in Dollinger v. Landa, 2018 NY Slip Op. 30365(U), disqualifying counsel because of a conflict based on a representation in a prior related action, explaining: A party seeking disqualification of its adversary’s counsel based on counsel’s purported prior representation of… Read more »
Court Refuses to Disqualify Counsel Based on Lawyer-Witness Rule
On February 1, 2018, Justice Ash of the Kings County Commercial Division issued a decision in Atlantic Yards Plaza LLC v. Talde, 2018 NY Slip Op. 30179(U), refusing to disqualify a lawyer under the lawyer-witness rule, explaining: [D]isqualification of MSF is also unwarranted pursuant to the witness-advocate rule. The witness-advocate rule contained in the Rules… Read more »
Corporation’s Former Counsel Cannot Represent One Shareholder Against Others
On February 7, 2018, the Second Department issued a decision in Deerin v. Ocean Rich Foods, LLC, 2018 NY Slip Op. 00820, holding that counsel should have been disqualified due to a conflict, explaining: A party seeking disqualification of its adversary’s counsel based on counsel’s purported prior representation of that party must establish (1) the… Read more »
Fiduciary Duty Claim Against Former Counsel Based on Conflict Timely Even Though Malpractice Claim Untimely
On December 28, 2017, the First Department issued a decision in Palmeri v. Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP, 2017 NY Slip Op. 09252, holding that a breach of fiduciary duty claim against former counsel was timely based on a conflict even though the related malpractice claim was untimely, explaining: Plaintiff’s claim for legal malpractice, in… Read more »
Prior Representation Not Shown to be Substantially Related so as to Justify Attorney Disqualification
On December 21, 2017, the Third Department issued a decision in NYAHSA Services, Inc., Self-insurance Trust v. People Care Inc., 2017 NY Slip Op. 08930, holding that a prior representation was not so substantially related to a current dispute in which prior counsel was adverse so as to justify that counsel’s disqualification, explaining: A party… Read more »