Waite

Defendant Verner S. Waite and his lawyer Randy Kramer appeal from the trial court’s order disqualifying Kramer from representing or assisting defendant in the underlying actions. They contend plaintiffs Carl Westerhoff, Sheldon Zinberg, and Abram Zinberg lacked standing to bring the motion for disqualification. Further, they contend that, even had the motion been made by a proper party, the court abused its discretion in ordering Kramer’s disqualification. We agree with both contentions and accordingly reverse the order.

Facts

The cases in which the court recused Kramer consist of three consolidated actions. The plaintiffs in these actions are DCH Health Services Corporation (the hospital), Downey Community Hospital Foundation (the foundation), Westerhoff, the Zinbergs, and several other parties not pertinent to this appeal. They sued Waite, an anonymous organization denominated “Concerned Citizens of Downey,” and some 1,000 Does. The complaints in these actions are for defamation in connection with a very public dispute in the Downey community concerning the operations of the hospital and the foundation. We first encountered this litigation in Rancho Publications v.…