A non-resident New York attorney and a California firm serving as co-counsel were disqualified from representing the defendants in a New York case based upon the plaintiff’s motion that alleged, in part, that defense counsel did not maintain a physical office space in the state of New York.
Justice Jerome C. Murphy, held that the California firm’s belated leasing of virtual office space did not satisfy New York’s Requirement under N.Y. Judiciary Law §470, which states that nonresident attorneys who are licensed in New York must maintain physical office space “for the transaction of law business in the state in order to appear in New York courts.” While those critical of §470 have argued that it is a dated restriction harking back to an age when only residents of New York could be admitted to the New York State Bar, the law has persistently survived constitutional attacks.
Defense counsel asserted that disqualification was not warranted because they had a lease agreement with a company that offers “virtual office space” on Wall Street, with an arrangement that includes “24-hour access to physical office space.” Justice Murphy noted that the lease agreements furnished by the disqualified firm were executed after the lawsuit commenced. The initial pleadings only referenced a Santa Rosa, California office. Moreover, Justice Murphy explained that he could not ignore the fact that the firm had “no attorneys or law firm staff” in the New York location.
Read the full order here.
