Younan

Plaintiff Edward W. Younan appeals from the order dismissing his legal malpractice complaint against defendant Paul Caruso. For the reasons set forth below, we affirm that order.

Facts and Procedural History

Plaintiff and appellant Edward W. Younan (Younan or appellant) was convicted in 1985 of molesting his young stepdaughter. The lawyer who defended him in that criminal prosecution is the defendant and respondent here, Paul Caruso (Caruso or respondent). Younan was sentenced to state prison and released in February 1991. On January 15, 1992, Younan filed a lawsuit against Caruso alleging legal malpractice in connection with Caruso’s defense of the molestation charge.

The critical portion of Younan’s complaint alleges that Caruso “failed to investigate the charges and to call professional witnesses on [Younan’s] behalf .... Defendant negligently and carelessly failed to interview witnesses to support the position of the Plaintiff and to investigate the claim of the prosecution or to call witnesses to testify on [Younan’s] behalf ... as requested by [Younan] and as needed to find [him] not guilty.”

In August 1994 Caruso moved for dismissal of Younan’s complaint on the…