Legal News

Nevada judge hits lawyers, their client, and their firm with over $200,000 in sanctions

By Richard Binder

Last Tuesday U.S. Magistrate Judge Valerie Cooke of Nevada District Court imposed sanctions amounting in a little over $20,000 against the firm Liner Grode Stein Yankelevitz Sunshine Regenstrief & Taylor for the "scorched earth litigation tactics" of two of its lawyers, Deborah Klar and Teri Pham, and their roles in attempting to obtain files under a "retaining lien" by their client's former attorney, Michael Flynn. 

Flynn was the first lawyer to represent Dennis Montgomery, a software designer embroiled in a legal battle with Warren Trepp, owner of eTreppid Technologies, over ownership of special software.  Flynn quit the case in July 2007, claiming he wasn't getting paid.  Flynn used the Nevada law provision of "retaining lien" on Montgomery's files until his fees were paid.  Klar and Pham, who took over for Flynn, went to a California court, the San Diego County Bar Association and the Massachusetts Bar looking for a ruling in their favor to get those files, in spite of a ruling by Cooke saying that the federal court in Nevada had jurisdiction over Flynn's fees and his possession of documents on the case. 

Cooke wrote that she was convinced that Klar and Pham's actions "were part of a litigation strategy designed to remove both the client file and fee dispute from this court's jurisdiction, deny Mr. Flynn the disputed attorney's fees, and force him to expend significant attorney's fees defending his interests in three other forums."

Cooke also fined Klar $102,205 and $20,441 to Pham. The judge ordered the two attorneys to perform a combined 300 hours of pro bono work and barred them from practicing law in Nevada for five years.  In addition, Cooke ordered Montgomery to pay $61,323 in sanctions, saying he committed perjury in a second declaration to the court when he made claims about where he thought Flynn was licensed to practice.

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Full post as published by Legal Pad | LA on April 07, 2009 (boomark / email).