Six-Year Delay in Raising Attorney’s Conflict of Interest Waived the Objection
The Second Department determined plaintiffs six-year delay in moving to disqualify an attorney for the defendants on conflict-of-interest grounds constituted a waiver of any objection to the attorney’s participation. The court described the legal analysis as follows:
The party seeking to disqualify a law firm or an attorney bears the burden to show sufficient proof to warrant such a determination” …. “Whether to disqualify an attorney is a matter which lies within the sound discretion of the court” … . Where a party seeks to disqualify its adversary’s counsel in the context of ongoing litigation, courts consider when the challenged interests became materially adverse to determine if the party could have moved at an earlier time … . If a party moving for disqualification was aware or should have been aware of the facts underlying an alleged conflict of interest for an extended period of time before bringing the motion, that party may be found to have waived any objection to the other party’s representation… . Hele Asset, LLC v S E E Realty Assoc, 2013 NY Slip Op 03061, 2nd Dept, 5-1-13