Durst

Petitioner seeks a writ of prohibition to prohibit his examination by a medical expert ordered by the court upon its own motion under section 1871 of the Code of Civil Procedure, unless the petitioner is permitted to have his counsel and a court reporter present at such examination.

Petitioner, an attorney, commenced several actions against various insurance companies seeking to recover under per sonal disability provisions of their policies. We are concerned here only with his action against Washington National Insurance Company, the real party in interest in the instant case, by which petitioner was an insured under an attorneys’ group policy. He claims that as the result of injuries sustained in an automobile accident on December 5, 1957, he has developed a psychosis which has rendered him totally disabled, entitling him to disability payments for the remainder of his life.

Under the policy the insured is entitled to monthly benefits for a maximum of five years if the disability results from sickness, but if it results from an accident then the benefits may be payable for the remainder of the insured’s life. The defendant, Washington National Insurance Company, contends that…