Court Opinion

ID: 9819854
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-09-01 06:40:51.683877+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T07:38:33.293387
License: Public Domain

Tom, J.P.
(concurring). Nonparty attorneys Burton Citak and Donald L. Citak appeal from two orders, insofar as they imposed sanctions upon each of the Citaks in the sum of $7,500; *90ordered the Citaks to pay $12,639.18 in attorneys’ fees, $12,314 in costs for extraordinary guardianship services and $687.50 in costs for additional court evaluator services; and denied legal fees to the Citaks. The issues raised on this appeal are limited solely to the collateral matter of the imposition of costs and sanctions on counsel and their entitlement to legal fees. The disposition of the article 81 guardianship proceeding in the appointment of a temporary guardian for Eva Dworecki, an alleged incapacitated person (AIP), upon consent was never appealed and is not before us. With all due deference to my colleagues, their extensive discussion on issues outside the scope of sanctions and legal fees is without legal significance and is mere dicta.
A short synopsis of what transpired in the course of this article 81 petition is informative. In July 2012, proceedings were held in connection with the petition to appoint a guardian of the person and property of Dr. Eva Dworecki, then 94, brought by the Nazi Victim Services of Selfhelp Community Services, which had provided assistance to her since 2002 and expressed concern regarding her declining memory and judgment. For instance, Dr. Dworecki could not remember if she had eaten, put food on her stove to heat, or taken her medication, nor was she able to attend to her personal needs, causing a serious risk to her health. She suffers from numerous medical conditions and was unable to manage her finances due to her impaired vision and memory loss. She did not recall whether she had paid her bills or how much money she had. Furthermore, she had been the victim of financial exploitation by one of her home health aides. Extensive discussions were conducted in camera with Donald Citak and Burton Citak, counsel for petitioner, and the Court Evaluator, Matthew Milford, at which the structure of the proposed guardianship was discussed. After affording the Citaks time to consult with their client, the court conducted proceedings on the record, during which Dr. Dworecki acknowledged her need for assistance and consented to the appointment of an interim special guardian. In an order dated August 10, 2012, the court appointed Sabrina Morrissey, Esq., as “special interim guardian” of Dr. Dworecki, and provided that Dr. Dworecki’s long-time friend and financial advisor, Edward Muster, would continue to assist with the payment of Dr. Dworecki’s regular expenses. At a status conference held the following January, Donald Citak acknowledged “that there ha[d] been significant improvements in the day-to-day life” of his client following her receipt of vari*91ous services arranged by her guardian. While indicating that Dr. Dworeeki displayed some ambivalence due to her desire to retain her independence, counsel waived the article 81 competency hearing and finding of incapacity stating that he and his client would consent to a continued guardianship on condition that it be labeled as a “temporary” guardianship and that Morrissey and Muster be named joint temporary guardians.
By order entered January 31, 2013, the court extended the temporary guardianship for a period of five years, during which time Morrissey and Muster were to serve as coguardians. The order recites that on August 9, 2012, Dr. Dworeeki had consented to the appointment of an interim special guardian and that on January 16, 2013, the Citaks had advised the court that Dr. Dworeeki acknowledged her continued need for assistance and consented to a temporary guardianship of indefinite duration, with Muster continuing to assist Dr. Dworeeki with her finances. The order concluded by directing the interim guardian, Sabrina Morrissey, Esq., to settle a final order and judgment.
In the first of the applications at issue, Dr. Dworeeki, by the Citak firm, filed an order to show cause with temporary restraining order to stay entry of any order appointing a guardian and to schedule an article 81 hearing on her competency and capacity. In disregard of his previous representations acknowledging Dr. Dworecki’s need of assistance and consenting to the appointment of a temporary guardianship to the court, Donald Citak submitted an affirmation asserting,
“at no time, did Dr. Dworecki’s [sic] consent to what was happening to her, nor did she in any way waive her right to consent to the imposition of a Guardian. This Court appears to have completely ignored Dr. Dworecki’s wishes and appears ready to run completely roughshod over them and over her rights” (emphasis added).
He also alleged that the court had wrongfully and unlawfully denied Dr. Dworeeki the right to counsel of her own choosing and was attempting to “hide, misconstrue or conceal facts from Dr. Dworeeki.” He further accused the court of having
“completely disregarded what Dr. Dworeeki herself believes or feels, without any proof or evidence that such drastic intervention into Dr. Dworecki’s life is *92warranted or necessary, either with respect to her personal home care needs or the management of her financial affairs, and without exploring the least intrusive form to provide Dr. Dworecki with whatever assistance it perceives she needs.”
During oral argument, Donald Citak maintained that he had “strenuously objected to the Court’s interpreting what [the Citaks] may have consented to at that time and what the Court can consider consenting.” He requested a full article 81 hearing, and the court signed the TRO directing that a hearing be held on April 30, 2013.
Prior to the scheduled article 81 hearing, petitioner brought a motion seeking the removal of the Citak firm as counsel to Dr. Dworecki. The grounds included conflict of interest, unfamiliarity with article 81 law, purportedly frivolous and untrue allegations against petitioner, unethical behavior toward Dr. Dworecki and other interested parties bordering on malpractice, and a general lack of courtesy toward Dr. Dworecki, the motion court, and the other attorneys involved in the proceeding.
In the second motion at issue, Dr. Dworecki, through the Citak firm, moved by order to show cause to dismiss the petition. She alleged deprivation of right to counsel and physician-patient privilege, conflict of interest resulting from the motion court’s failure to appoint an independent court evaluator and deliberate efforts by the motion court, the temporary guardian, and social workers to mislead and deceive her by failing to disclose the truth of the proceedings. Donald Citak submitted a 46-page supporting affirmation enumerating the numerous purported ways in which Dr. Dworecki’s rights had been violated by the motion court and others.
The court consolidated both motions for disposition, declining to sign the order to show cause seeking dismissal of the petition and vacating the prior interim relief staying entry of the order appointing a guardian. Accurately summarizing the character of the applications, the court stated:
“In flagrant disregard of their prior consent and participation in the establishment of a guardianship for Dr. Dworecki, as well as their waiver of proceedings in favor of an adjudication of Dr. Dworecki as a Person In Need of a Guardian, the Citaks impugn the integrity and credibility of this court ... [A] detailed and thorough review of the *93record . . . has unequivocally established that the Citaks’ filings are replete with misrepresentations, omissions, distortions, and statements taken out of context; and that their attacks on this court, its appointees, and petitioner and its counsel, are wholly without merit and made in utter bad faith.”
The record amply supports Supreme Court’s finding that filings and remarks made by counsel during oral argument contained a number of inaccurate and outright false material statements in support of the two orders to show cause, accusing the court of misconduct and dereliction in its duties that were devoid of merit, and undertaken “primarily ... to harass or maliciously injure another,” thereby warranting the award of costs and sanctions for engaging in frivolous conduct (22 NYCRR 130-1.1 [c] [2]). What is disturbing is the fact that the court order appointing a temporary guardian for the AIP, and the focus of counsel’s attack, was consented to by Dr. Dworecki and counsel before the court. It should be noted that following the April 30, 2013 court order imposing costs and/or sanctions, the Citak firm voluntarily withdrew as counsel to Dr. Dworecki.
At the sanctions hearing, it was conceded by counsels’ attorney that statements accusing the court of fraud were unjustifiable, acknowledging “the inappropriate style and the disrespectful tone” of the submissions. Nevertheless, it is equally clear that the statements are attributable to Donald Citak, and there is a lack of record support for the imposition of an equivalent sanction against Burton Citak, who neither argued before the court nor submitted an affirmation in connection with the respective applications. Finally, further proceedings are required to determine the appropriate costs to be awarded (22 NYCRR 130-1.2), to reduce the award of costs and sanctions to a judgment and to set the reasonable amount of legal fees payable to Citak & Citak for their representation of Dr. Dworecki prior to the filing of the frivolous orders to show cause.