Neiman v. LOCAL 144, HOTEL, HOSPITAL, ETC.

• Decision Date: 07 April 1981
• Docket Number: No. 80 CV 2202.,80 CV 2202.
• Citation: 512 F. Supp. 187
• Parties: Marvin NEIMAN, d/b/a Concourse Nursing Home, Plaintiff, v. LOCAL 144, HOTEL, HOSPITAL, NURSING HOME & ALLIED HEALTH SERVICES UNION, AFL-CIO, Peter Ottley as President, John Kelley as Secretary-Treasurer, Burton B. Turkus, James J. McFadden, and Marilyn M. Levine, Defendants. LOCAL 144, HOTEL, HOSPITAL, NURSING HOME & ALLIED HEALTH SERVICES UNION, AFL-CIO, Peter Ottley as President, John Kelley as Secretary-Treasurer, Third-Party Plaintiffs, v. GREATER NEW YORK HEALTH CARE FACILITIES ASSOCIATION, INC., a New York not-for-profit corporation, Individually and on behalf of its member residential health care facilities, Bartholomew Lawson, Individually and as Executive Director, Third-Party Defendants.
• Court: U.S. District Court — Eastern District of New York

512 F. Supp. 187

Marvin NEIMAN, d/b/a Concourse Nursing Home, Plaintiff, v. LOCAL 144, HOTEL, HOSPITAL, NURSING HOME & ALLIED HEALTH SERVICES UNION, AFL-CIO, Peter Ottley as President, John Kelley as Secretary-Treasurer, Burton B. Turkus, James J. McFadden, and Marilyn M. Levine, Defendants.

LOCAL 144, HOTEL, HOSPITAL, NURSING HOME & ALLIED HEALTH SERVICES UNION, AFL-CIO, Peter Ottley as President, John Kelley as Secretary-Treasurer, Third-Party Plaintiffs, v. GREATER NEW YORK HEALTH CARE FACILITIES ASSOCIATION, INC., a New York not-for-profit corporation, Individually and on behalf of its member residential health care facilities, Bartholomew Lawson, Individually and as Executive Director, Third-Party Defendants.

No. 80 CV 2202.

United States District Court, E. D. New York.

April 7, 1981.

Jackson, Lewis, Schnitzler & Krupman, New York City, for plaintiff; Gregory I. Rasin, New York City, of counsel.

Vladeck, Elias, Vladeck & Engelhard, P.C., New York City, for defendants and third-party plaintiffs; Steven Kahn, New York City, of counsel.

Jeffrey Cohn, New York City, Greater New York Health Care Facilities Ass'n, Inc., for third-party defendants.

Memorandum of Decision and Order

MISHLER, Senior District Judge.

The primary cause of action arises out of an arbitration award¹ issued on May 22, 1980 which purportedly required plaintiff, Marvin Neiman, to grant certain wage increases and benefits to the employees working at Concourse Nursing Home who are employed by C.N.H. Management Associates, Inc. (hereinafter "C.N.H."). Neiman is the sole proprietor of Concourse Nursing Home (hereinafter "the Home") and has contracted with C.N.H. for the performance of all services at the Home, including the responsibility of managing all aspects of employee relations. The ultimate relief sought is to have the May 22, 1980 arbitration award vacated. One of the grounds offered in support of such relief is that third-party defendants, Greater New York Health Care Facilities Association, Inc. (hereinafter "the Association") and Lawson, who acted as plaintiff's representative in the arbitration proceedings which led to the arbitration award herein disputed, had no authority to act as plaintiff's agent. By so representing themselves, the Association and Lawson, plaintiff contends, "fraudulently assisted in the procurement of the award." (Complaint at ¶ 30). A fortiori, "Defendant Arbitrators did not have authority to preside over a matter involving, and render an award against, plaintiff or C.N.H." (Complaint at ¶ 31).

After their invitation into this action, third-party defendants brought on the instant motion for an order disqualifying the law firm Jackson, Lewis, Schnitzler & Krupman (hereinafter Jackson, Lewis) as attorneys for plaintiff in this action. The Association and Lawson cite Canons 4, 5 and 9 of the Code of Professional Responsibility² as the authority for the assertion that their former attorneys Jackson, Lewis should withdraw from this action. Because we disagree with third-party defendants the motion seeking disqualification is denied.

FACTS

As sole proprietor of the Home, plaintiff has sought the assistance of counsel in numerous labor relations matters, and in that capacity, Jackson, Lewis has continually served as the Home's labor counsel since October 1974. The services provided over the years by Jackson, Lewis have covered: all matters involving the Home and defendant Local 144; all proceedings before the National Labor Relations Board; all other proceedings involving employee relations matters; and all personnel-related matters. Jackson, Lewis has served as C.N.H.'s exclusive labor counsel since its inception in August 1978. The importance of the relationship between owner and employer, the Home and C.N.H. respectively, and their labor counsel needs no discussion.

The Association, formerly named the Metropolitan New York Nursing Home Association, Inc., is a non-profit, multi-employer organization of residential health care facilities. The Association offers a variety of services, and as is pertinent here, it represents some of its members in labor negotiations and arbitrations, and serves as a resource for other members. Neiman was a member of the Association as well as a member of its Board of Directors (the "Board") from October 1974 until June 1980 when he withdrew from the Association. As a member of the Board, Neiman was "directly involved in the policy and decisional making processes of the Association in all operational, administrative, financial, and labor matters," (Affidavit of Marvin Neiman, ¶ 11), and as such, the information he was entitled to included all information known by Jackson, Lewis in its capacity as the Association's labor counsel. (Plaintiff's Memorandum in Opposition at p. 6). Movants do not contest either Mr. Neiman's extensive involvement in the policy making and operational aspects of the Association or his access to information known by Jackson, Lewis. Moreover, throughout the two-year period the Association had Jackson, Lewis under retainer, commencing in November 1976 and formally terminating in November 1978, the Association knew that the firm was simultaneously representing Neiman, and though it is not expressly stated in any of the papers submitted on this motion, we have every reason to believe that the Association was also aware of Jackson, Lewis' relationship with plaintiff prior to retaining Jackson, Lewis as its counsel. Movants fail to take issue with these facts, but rather rejoin that "the fact of or extent to which Jackson, Lewis represented plaintiff Neiman on a personal level during the time they represented the Association is not relevant to this application for relief." (Affidavit of Jeffrey R. Cohn, ¶ 6).

As the Association's counsel, Jackson, Lewis represented its individual member facilities in numerous and varied labor matters. This is not in dispute though there is disagreement on how related those matters were to the matter presently before this court.

DISCUSSION

Although no direct claim has been asserted between plaintiff and the Association, it is the Association's contention that Jackson, Lewis' participation in the main litigation would unduly prejudice their position as third-party defendants. Specifically, it cites the firm's knowledge of the inner operations of the Association and its knowledge of the collective bargaining history involving Neiman, Local 144 and the Association. Such information, it is contended, was acquired while Jackson, Lewis served as the Association's labor counsel.

In deciding this motion the court is cognizant of both its responsibility to enforce professional ethical standards as well as its obligation to uphold the individual's right to select counsel of his choice.

The instant motion by third-party defendants presents the question of disqualification in a rather unique context since the movant is not a direct adversary to the client, Neiman, who is represented by its former counsel. Though plaintiff makes a persuasive argument that third-party defendant lacks standing to bring on the motion for disqualification, our liberal reading of the Code of Professional Responsibility convinces us otherwise. An attorney may not be permitted to use confidential information "to the disadvantage of the client and a lawyer should not use, except with consent of his client and after full disclosure, such information for his own purposes." EC 4-5, ABA Code of Professional Responsibility (emphasis added). We believe the parties' positions are sufficiently adverse so that ...