Scott C. Moody, Inc. v. Staar Surgical Co.

The court made a ruling at sidebar that counsel should not inquire into a particular area. Counsel proceeded to do exactly what the court ordered him not to do. The trial court found counsel knowingly violated its order and imposed a $1,500 sanction under Code of Civil Procedure section 177.5. (Unless otherwise noted, all statutory references are to the Code of Civil Procedure.) We affirm the court’s order.

I

FACTS

Appellant Daniel J. Callahan, an attorney at law, appeals from an order imposing sanctions against him in the amount of $1,500 pursuant to section 177.5. The following colloquy occurred in open court between the trial court and Callahan outside the presence of the jury:

The court then inquired of the two other lawyers appearing on the matter, one of them Callahan’s cocounsel. Both confirmed the court’s order was just as the court stated it.

The court’s colloquy with Callahan continued:

A minute order reads: “[T]he Court’s Order to Mr. Callahan was made in the context of an ongoing issue concerning whether the Court should permit Defendant to introduce evidence that one of Staar’s Regional Manufacturer Representatives (Mr. Greiling) had wanted to exclude a…