GRIFFIN v. Trief & Olk, Respondent. (1999)

Supreme Court, Appellate Division, First Department, New York.

Ethel GRIFFIN, Public Administrator of the City of New York, as Administratrix of the Estate of Leo Williams Deceased, Plaintiff, v. F.J. SCIAME CONSTRUCTION CO., INC., et al., Defendants. William Pagan & Associates, P.C., Appellant, Trief & Olk, Respondent.

Decided: December 14, 1999

SULLIVAN, J.P., NARDELLI, WALLACH, SAXE and FRIEDMAN, JJ.

Tania M. Pagan, for Appellant. Barbara E. Olk, for Respondent.

Orders, Supreme Court, New York County (Richard Braun, J.), entered May 11, 1998, which, in this wrongful death action, inter alia, granted respondents' motion for an order directing appellant outgoing attorneys to stop work on this case and deliver the file immediately to incoming attorneys, denied appellants' cross motion for reimbursement, securing of a lien and sanctions, and imposed sanctions on appellants for frivolous litigation, unanimously affirmed, with costs.

This Court has previously found that appellant outgoing attorneys, while acting as attorneys to the estate of Leo Williams, took positions adverse to the interests of the estate's sole distributee in an attempt to retain control of the estate's wrongful death action and to collect legal fees (Matter of the Estate of Leo Williams, 245 A.D.2d 126, 665 N.Y.S.2d 656). Appellants are not entitled to fees incurred during the course of that conflict-ridden representation (see, Teichner v. W & J Holsteins, Inc., 64 N.Y.2d 977, 979, 489 N.Y.S.2d 36, 478 N.E.2d 177), which was entirely unauthorized. We have considered appellant's remaining contentions and find them unavailing.

MEMORANDUM DECISION.

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