Counsel’s Ownership Stake in Plaintiff’s Subsidiary Did Not Require Disqualification for Damages Trial

The court denied defendant's motion to disqualify plaintiff's counsel for a new trial on damages based on the lawyer-witness ethics rule where plaintiff's counsel had acquired a 10% stake in plaintiff's subsidiary and the subsidiary's network administrator and paralegal performed work at counsel's direction. "[Plaintiff's counsel's] 10% stake in [plaintiff's subsidiary] is out of line with Connecticut rule of professional conduct 1.8(i). . . . However, the court concludes that this interest, along with other aspects of [counsel's] relationship with [plaintiff's subsidiary], while troubling, do not rise to the level of posing a significant risk of trial taint, especially given that the issue of damages is all that remains to be resolved."

WhitServe LLC v. Computer Packages, Inc. et al, 3-06-cv-01935 (CTD December 26, 2013, Order) (Covello, J.)