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Brown v. Contemporary OB/GYN Associates3/27/2002
I did not believe once I had created the information or wall, as it has been phrased, a Chinese wall, that I had a separate obligation to contact Mr. Agbaje to advise him.
I believed that was -- with the attorney/client privilege particularly at that stage, it was for Mr. -- or for Dr. Osborne to waive the privilege and discuss it directly with -- with counsel.
The following testimony of Armstrong is also pertinent.
[COUNSEL FOR APPELLEES]: And can you tell us, sir, t any time after you commenced representation of Dr. Osborne in the Singleton matter, had you at any time, either orally, in writing, directly, indirectly, discussed with him any aspect of the Brown case?
[ARMSTRONG]: No.
[COUNSEL FOR APPELLEES]: Does that also include his availability for trial --
[ARMSTRONG]: Yes.
[COUNSEL FOR APPELLEES]: -- in March of the Year 2000?
[ARMSTRONG]: Yes, it does.
[COUNSEL FOR APPELLEES]: And did you make any effort at any time, either before trial or during trial to find out from Dr. Osborne or his staff or have a member of your staff try to find out information about whether he was actually coming to this trial or not?
[ARMSTRONG]: I made no attempt to make any such contact or to determine that at all.
[COUNSEL FOR APPELLEES]: And did you, Mr. Armstrong, do anything, either directly or indirectly, to cause, influence or in any way have Dr. Osborne not be present for trial in the Brown matter in March of the Year 2000?
[ARMSTRONG]: I did nothing other than what is reflected in my letter of January 6th, which is to advise him I would not discuss it and leave it up to him to discuss it with Mr. Agbaje.
I have had no other oral or written contact about the Brown case with him at all.
When asked why Armstrong told the court during the third trial that it was the first time he had heard of Dr. Osborne's unavailability, Armstrong explained:
I had had no contact with [Dr. Osborne] about the appearance at trial. I assumed that arrangements had been made to bring him back and have him testify at trial.
The following testimony is also pertinent:
[COUNSEL FOR APPELLEES]: Can you tell me, sir, ere you aware before March of 2000 from your contact with Dr. Osborne that he was not going to be or at least his plans were not to be in town at the time of the trial of the Brown matter?
[ARMSTRONG]: I knew that he had plans to be in Panama the week of March 21st, but that doesn't mean that I knew that he had plans not be in town for the trial.
The trial was scheduled for 10 days, and I did not know what arrangements had been made with Mr. Agbaje for his presence.
The information that I had had was that he was going to be in Panama the week of March 21st. When counsel indicated that he was going to bring him back, I assumed that other arrangements had been made, and I assumed that they were going to then produce him as they had promised on Thursday, March 23rd.
[COUNSEL FOR APPELLEES]: And can you tell me, Mr. Armstrong, p until the discussion that was had before Judge McAuliffe on the morning of March 22, 2000, were you aware in any way, shape or form, through either direct or indirect information of any kind that Dr. Osborne was not going to be in attendance physically and personally at the Brown trial?
[ARMSTRONG]: No.
Paul Bekman, Esquire, who testified as an expert for Armstrong, opined that Armstrong complied with his "professional and ethical obligations" in regard to Dr. Osborne. Bekman noted that the p
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