Court Opinion

ID: 9749230
Source: CourtListenerOpinion
Date Created: 2023-08-27 16:28:37.49968+00
Date Added: 2024-06-11T07:25:45.331459
License: Public Domain

GLENN A. NORTON, Judge,
dissenting.
The majority concludes Respondent abused his discretion in fading to grant Relator’s (“the Prosecutor”) motion to disqualify Counsel, finding that defendant and his wife could not have validly consented to the alleged conflict of interest created by Counsel’s representation of them both. This conclusion effectively assumes wife, as an alleged victim of domestic assault, loses her ability to make her own choices. It also denies defendant counsel of his choosing. Based upon the abuse of discretion standard of review, whether defendant and his wife could validly consent to the conflict of interest was a decision more properly made by the trial court, not the Court of Appeals. I disagree with the majority because no conflict of interest presently exists, and any previous conflict of interest was validly waived.
I. DISCUSSION
The majority’s opinion is based on three independent considerations. First, that Counsel’s representation of both defendant and his wife violates the Rules of Professional Conduct. Second, that such representation compromises defendant’s right to effective assistance of counsel under the Sixth Amendment. Third and finally, that such representation threatens the integrity of the judicial system as well as the public’s confidence in the system. I disagree with each of the majority’s conclusions.
A. No Conflict of Interest Presently Exists
In this case, the majority essentially advocates a per se conflict of interest if the clients are a defendant and an alleged victim because their positions are “necessarily adverse.” Each part of the majority’s analysis assumes defendant and his wife are “opposing persons” because of their “necessarily adverse” interests. However, there is no evidence in the record to support such a conclusion. Instead, at the preliminary hearing, wife refused to testify against defendant based upon the marital privilege and her right against self-incrimination. This decision would certainly align her interests with defendant’s interests, even in light of the Prose*513cutor’s pursuit of criminal charges against him. If the interests of defendant and his wife are now the same, no conflict of interest presently exists.
Nevertheless, for purposes of this discussion, I am willing to concede a conflict may have existed, at least at some point. As discussed below, any previous conflict was properly waived by valid consent from defendant and his wife, and the trial court did not abuse its discretion in denying the Prosecutor’s motion to disqualify Counsel.
B. Any Previous Conflict of Interest was Properly Waived
Pursuant to Rule 4-1.7(b), there are certain circumstances in which a lawyer may represent a client notwithstanding the existence of a conflict of interest. These are:
(1) the lawyer reasonably believes that the lawyer will be able to provide competent and diligent representation to each affected client;
(2) the representation is not prohibited by law;
(3) the representation does not involve the assertion of a claim by one client against another client represented by the lawyer in the same litigation or other proceeding before a tribunal; and
(4) each affected client gives informed consent, confirmed in writing.
The majority effectively concludes Counsel could not possibly competently and diligently represent both parties because their interests are necessarily adverse. This approach is inconsistent with the general principles discussed in the comments following Rule 4-1.7 of the Rules of Professional Conduct. The Missouri Supreme Court, in its comments to Rule 4-1.7, contemplates nonconsentable conflicts; however, the Court instructs that whether clients are aligned directly against each other within the meaning of Rule 4-1.7 requires “examination of the context of the proceeding.” Rule 4-1.7 cmt. [17]. The majority’s conclusion that a per se noncon-sentable conflict of interest exists here does not take into account the particular circumstances of this case. While unfortunate that a married couple’s relationship reached such a point where allegations of domestic abuse were made, those allegations do not necessarily result in the conclusion that neither party is thereafter competent to determine his or her options. Instead, both defendant and his wife have made an informed choice to be represented by the same lawyer. That lawyer has assured the trial court he believes he can provide competent and diligent representation to each of his clients, and it was well within the discretion of the trial court to believe Counsel’s statement was reasonable based upon the circumstances here. Moreover, as explained above, it is speculation to conclude that defendant and his wife necessarily have such adverse interests as to result in the conclusion that any conflict of interest could not be waived. Here, any conflict of interest was validly waived, consistent with Rule 4-1.7, through informed, written consent. The Rules of Professional Conduct provide the guidelines for conflicts of interest and the requirements to waive such conflicts. Counsel followed these rules.
In addition, the majority cites several cases from other jurisdictions in support of its conclusion that the parties here could not consent to dual representation. The majority particularly relies upon In re S.G., 175 N.J. 132, 814 A.2d 612, 614 (2003) and United States v. Alex, 788 F.Supp. 359, 364 (N.D.Ill.1992). It is important to note neither case interprets Missouri’s Rule 4-1.7, but instead focuses upon different rules of professional conduct.
*514The majority also bases its conclusion that the trial court abused its discretion in denying the Prosecutor’s motion to disqualify in part because the dual representation “smells of collusion” among Counsel, defendant, and his wife. Although the majority acknowledges the decision to disqualify counsel lies within the sound discretion of the trial court, In re Marriage of Goodman, 267 S.W.3d 783, 786 (Mo.App. S.D.2008), its finding of suspected “collusion” undermines the role of the trial court as the finder of fact.
An abuse of discretion occurs only where the trial court’s decision is clearly against the logic of the circumstances before the trial court and is so arbitrary and unreasonable that it shocks the sense of justice and indicates a lack of careful consideration by the trial court. Id. The trial court in this case exercised its discretion, after a detailed hearing, to deny the motion to disqualify. The trial court’s decision was not so clearly against the logic of the circumstances nor so arbitrary and unreasonable as to shock the sense of justice, and nothing in the record indicates a lack of careful consideration by the trial court. Therefore the trial court did not abuse its discretion. For this Court to determine otherwise would not only usurp the sound discretion of the trial court, but also the ability of the parties involved to choose their counsel.
C. Sixth Amendment Considerations
The majority also discusses defendant’s Sixth Amendment right to the assistance of counsel. According to the majority, the existence of the “obvious and deleterious conflict” between defendant and his wife necessarily results in the conclusion that Counsel cannot provide effective assistance to defendant. The majority states in the face of this conflict, defendant’s waiver is essentially meaningless. I disagree.
The majority does cite authority for the proposition that where a conflict of interest exists and impairs counsel’s ability to conform to the ethical rules, the trial court should not tolerate the “inadequate representation of the defendant.” See Wheat v. United States, 486 U.S. 153, 158-59, 108 S.Ct. 1692, 100 L.Ed.2d 140 (1988). However, the majority’s reliance upon this authority presumes Counsel was unable to conform to ethical rules. As discussed above, I disagree. Counsel acted well within the Rules of Professional Conduct, and nothing in the record indicates any deficiency in his representation of defendant.
Moreover, the Sixth Amendment right to effective counsel belongs to defendant. Should any deficiency or inadequacy of counsel arise, defendant could pursue the proper remedies himself without the purported protection the Prosecutor is now seeking. Interestingly, the practical result of the majority’s decision is to deny defendant counsel of his choosing. This outcome seems more an infringement on defendant’s Sixth Amendment right to counsel than a protection of it.
D. Public Policy Considerations
The majority’s final consideration is the integrity of the judicial system and the public’s confidence in the system. The majority concludes Counsel’s dual representation in this case “threatens the integrity of our judicial system and undermines public confidence in the system because of the appearance of impropriety.” The discussion, however, seems more focused on what it refers to as the suspected “collusion” among Counsel, defendant and his wife. This suspected “collusion” is no more than a wife deciding not to testify against her husband after an allegation of domestic abuse. Regardless of wife’s motivation here, it seems wrong to profess *515protection of the integrity of our system when it is clear Counsel attempted to follow the ethical rules in place for just such protection, seeking to secure valid consent to any conflict of interest. Sound public policy would allow a competent adult to make an informed, written waiver of a conflict of interest where such waiver is consistent with the Rules of Professional Conduct adopted by our Supreme Court.
Allowing a prosecutor to challenge a defendant’s or alleged victim’s choice of counsel when such counsel has carefully adhered to the Rules of Professional Conduct only serves to weaken the system. To argue that the integrity of the judicial system and the public’s confidence in the system is somehow threatened by that choice seems implausible.
II. CONCLUSION
The trial court acted well within its sound discretion to deny the Prosecutor’s motion to disqualify Counsel, and I would deny the request for writ of prohibition.