ESC-Toy Ltd. v. Sony Interactive Entertainment LLC

1 UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 4 ESC-TOY LTD., Case No. 21-cv-00778-EMC

Plaintiffs,

ORDER TO DISQUALIFY COUNSEL

v. MASCHOFF BRENNAN

SONY INTERACTIVE ENTERTAINMENT LLC, Docket No. 316 9 Defendants. 10 I. INTRODUCTION Defendant Sony Interactive Entertainment, LLC (“SIE”) moves to disqualify Plaintiff ESC-Toy Ltd.’s (“ESC”) counsel, Maschoff Brennan (“MABR”), for improperly obtaining SIE’s confidential information from SIE’s former counsel, Shelly Gayner. For the reasons provided below, MABR is disqualified. The motion is GRANTED. II. BACKGROUND This motion arose out of MABR’s improper communications with SIE’s former counsel, Shelly Gayner. Mot. to Disqualify, 1. SIE argues that Ms. Gayner improperly worked with SIE’s adversaries in this action, ESC and MABR, providing them with SIE’s privileged information. Id. at 18. MABR claims that they should not be disqualified because Ms. Gayner…