The rules, as stated in 22 NYCRR 1200.0, provide guidance, but they are not binding authority in determining whether a party's attorney should be disqualified during litigation. Pursuant to Rule of Professional Conduct 3.7(a), "[a] lawyer shall not act as advocate before a tribunal in a matter in which the lawyer is likely to be a witness on a significant issue of fact." At 3.7[a][3], there is an exception when "disqualification of the lawyer would work substantial hardship on the client." In addition, the rule generally does not apply where the attorney is a litigant. However, estate representatives represent the interests of the estate's beneficiaries, rather than their own, and so the advocate-witness rule will prevail over a fiduciary-attorney's right to self-representation.
Greenberg v. Grace Plaza Nursing & Rehabilitation Ctr., NY Slip Op 05390 (2d Dep't July 3, 2019)
Here is the decision.
