Opinion ID: 1652426
Heading Depth: 1
Heading Rank: 10

Heading: Byron Eiseman

Text: Henry Hodges, one of Ms. Skokos's lawyers, filed a complaint against the Chancellor with the Judicial Discipline and Disability Commission on a matter not related to this case. In that proceeding, the Chancellor was represented by a member of the law firm of Friday, Eldredge, and Clark. During the phase of the trial concerned with the QPRTs, Byron Eiseman, a member of that firm, appeared in the courtroom. The Chancellor noted the fact that persons she did not know were in the courtroom. Later, she realized that Mr. Eiseman was a member of the Friday firm. She announced it was her practice to recuse in matters in which the Friday firm served as counsel, and she invited motions. Counsel for Ms. Skokos moved that the Chancellor recuse. The contention was that Mr. Eiseman's name had been on Mr. Skokos's witness list and that the Chancellor thus should have known of his connection with Mr. Skokos much earlier. In addition, Mr. Eiseman's name and his potential testimony, although not the name of his law firm, had been mentioned orally several times in the proceedings. After the Chancellor made her announcement, counsel for Mr. Skokos withdrew Mr. Eiseman as an expert witness. Mr. Eiseman left the courtroom and did not testify. The Chancellor took the motion under advisement and later announced she would not recuse. Ms. Skokos asserts that recusal was necessary, in spite of the fact that Mr. Eiseman was withdrawn as a witness and never testified, because of Mr. Eiseman's improper participation in the case, consisting of sitting at counsel's table and being  de facto, if not de jure, co-counsel to [Mr. Skokos] in the trial. The Chancellor's explanation in response to the motion included the fact that she had not read the witness list and that she did not realize a member of the Friday firm was in the courtroom until she recalled seeing Mr. Eiseman's name on correspondence, apparently from her attorney. We cannot tell from the record before us the extent, if any, of Mr. Eiseman's participation in this case beyond having been consulted and listed as an expert witness for Mr. Skokos. We note the Chancellor's remarks that she did not know him and that he had, to her knowledge, not appeared before her previously. The record does not demonstrate any bias resulting from the incident, and, given the withdrawal of Mr. Eiseman, we cannot say any appearance of bias was such as to require recusal.