Hart
Hart v. Braun
Opinion
Lead Opinion
MEMORANDUM **
James Thomas Hart appeals the district court’s judgment dismissing his legal malpractice action against his former public defender, Lawrence L. Braun. We have jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1291 . We review de novo the district court’s dismissal of a claim on statute of limitations grounds, Azer v. Connell, 306 F.3d 930, 936 (9th Cir.2002), and we affirm.
Braun represented Hart in a criminal trial that resulted in Hart’s conviction for child molestation. Hart served six years in prison before the Ninth Circuit reversed his conviction upon granting his habeas petition based on ineffective assistance of counsel. See Hart v. Gomez, 174 F.3d 1067 (9th Cir.1999).
The district court properly dismissed Hart’s malpractice action against his former attorney as time-barred because he *594 failed to meet the statute of limitations for legal malpractice actions in California, set out in CaLCode of Civ. Pro. § 340.6(a).
Because Hart failed to raise his equitable tolling argument before the district court, we deem it waived. See Conn. Gen. Life Ins. Co. v. New Images of Beverly Hills, 321 F.3d 878, 882 (9th Cir.2003) (noting that absent exceptional circumstances,…