Jeremiah Johns v. Donovan Francis, et al.

Summary

The United States District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana denied Jeremiah Johns’ motion to disqualify defense counsel Blair Brogan in litigation concerning membership allocation in The Johns Law Firm LLC. The court held that Johns had not shown Brogan was a necessary witness whose testimony was material, unavailable from other sources, and potentially prejudicial to her clients, while noting that the issue could be revisited if the trial record develops differently.

Holdings

1. A motion to disqualify counsel under Rule 3.7 requires the movant to establish that the attorney will provide material evidence, that the evidence cannot be obtained elsewhere, and that the attorney's testimony is prejudicial or potentially prejudicial to the client. Plaintiff failed to make that showing, so disqualification was unwarranted.
2. The court did not reach whether the clients' consent resolved or waived the conflict because Plaintiff had not first shown that Brogan was a necessary witness under Rule 3.7.

Questions Presented

1. Whether defense counsel should be disqualified under Rule 3.7 because she was allegedly likely to be a necessary trial witness.
2. Whether Plaintiff established that counsel's testimony was material, unavailable from other sources, and prejudicial or potentially prejudicial to her clients.

Disposition

other