Frazee

Plaintiff Debra L. Frazee appeals from a summary judgment in favor of defendants Hall Seely, Katia Diehl, the law firm of Seely & Russell (S & R), Michelle Elizabeth Hales, Robert P. Etienne, and the law firm of Hales, Hales & Etienne (H, H & E). Frazee contends the court erred by granting summary judgment in her malpractice action for the following reasons: (1) the court granted summary judgment without allowing oral argument; (2) it incorrectly denied her request for a continuance to conduct further discovery to oppose the summary judgment motion; (3) it incorrectly granted a motion by Hales, Etienne, and H, H & E to join in the motion for summary judgment/adjudication filed by Seely, Diehl, and S & R; (4) it applied the wrong standards of proof and persuasion to the summary judgment motion; and (5) there are genuine questions of material fact. We agree with the second and third contentions and reverse.

Facts

Frazee retained Hales and Etienne of H, H & E to represent her in a dissolution action filed by her husband in Santa Clara County. This representation was for the purpose of “protecting [her] property rights, obtaining orders of support for herself and her son, .…