Davis v. Stansbury

In Davis v. Stansbury, 824 S.W.2d 278, 280-81 (Tex. App.--Houston 1st Dist. 1992, orig. proceeding), the wife retained an attorney, Foster, to represent her in a divorce. The couple reconciled, then separated. The husband approached Foster's partner, Orsak, with whom the husband has a social relationship, about representing him in the divorce. The husband did not tell Orsak that Foster represented the wife in the prior proceeding, and retained Orsak after a second meeting in which no privileged information was imparted. When Orsak gave his secretary the retainer check, he learned of the prior representation and withdrew from the case. The husband then moved to disqualify Foster from representing the wife. The court of appeals held the trial court abused its discretion by disqualifying Foster. Id. at 284. The court reasoned that Orsak had followed the relevant rules of professional conduct and thereby eliminated the conflict. Id. at 283.