Answering a legal ethics question of first impression, a Georgia appeals panel has ruled that a paralegal who works on a case—then switches to the other side's firm—doesn't automatically disqualify her new employer from the litigation.
The July 1 ruling by the state Court of Appeals addressed a Fulton County wrongful death case. In the matter, a paralegal did investigation and other pre-suit work on the matter for the plaintiffs' firm, Atlanta's Hanks Brookes. She later took a job for Insley & Race, the Atlanta firm representing the defendant, several months before the lawsuit was filed. She has said she didn't realize when she took the job that her new employer was working on the matter. When Insley & Race realized the problem, it took steps to make sure the paralegal didn't talk to anyone at her new firm about the case.
