California Court of Appeal

Absent the existence of a lawyer-client relationship or other relationship imposing a duty of confidentiality, plaintiffs lacked standing to bring a motion for the disqualification of defendant-s attorney and, even had the motion been made by a proper party, it was an abuse of discretion to disqualify defense counsel, where disqualification was based solely on what court considered to be an appearance of impropriety, rather than on any evidence of an actual conflict of interest.

Appellate Information

• Decided 01/29/2002
• Published 01/29/2002

Judges

Court

• California Court of Appeal

Counsel

• For Appellees:
  
•  Blumberg Law Corporation, John P. Blumberg and Ave Buchwald, Long Beach, for Defendants and Appellants., Manatt, Phelps & Phillips and Donald R. Brown, Los Angeles, for Plaintiffs and Respondents DCH Health Services Corporation, Downey Community Hospital Foundation, Allen R. Korneff, and Edward J. Susank., Sheppard, Mullin, Richter & Hampton and Robert L. Layton, Los Angeles, for Plaintiff and Respondent Sheldon S. Zinberg., Salz & Salz and Brian Alan Baker, Pasadena, for Plaintiff and Respondent Carl Westerhoff., Law Offices of Neil F. Kligman and Neil F. Kligman, Santa Ana, for Plaintiff and Respondent Abram Zinberg.