Idlibi v. Ollennu

Citations

• 205 Conn. App. 660

Syllabus

The plaintiff sought damages from the defendant attorney for abuse of process, legal malpractice, malicious prosecution, and negligent and intentional infliction of emotional distress, arising out of his conduct during his representation of the plaintiff's former spouse, C, in her marital dissolution action against the plaintiff. The plaintiff alleged that the defendant knowingly notarized a fraudulent interrogatory response by C, counseled C to provide false testimony to a police detective that the plaintiff had assaulted her, and failed at any time to correct C's false testimony under oath regarding the alleged assault. The trial court granted the defendant's motion to dismiss, finding that the plaintiff did not have an attorney-client relationship with the defendant and that the defendant's conduct was protected by the doctrine of litigation privilege. On the plaintiff's appeal to this court, held: 1. The trial court erred in dismissing the plaintiff's abuse of process claim on the ground of the litigation privilege, as the claim was not within the scope of the privilege. 2. The trial court properly found that, as the plaintiff at no time had an attorney-client relationship with the defendant, the plaintiff lacked standing to bring a legal malpractice claim against him. 3. The trial court erred in dismissing the plaintiff's malicious prosecution claim on the ground of the litigation privilege, as the claim was not within the scope of the privilege. 4. The trial court properly found that the plaintiff's claims of negligent and intentional infliction of emotional distress were barred by the litigation privilege, as the defendant's conduct was privileged pursuant to Simms v. Seamen (308 Conn. 523) and Stone v. Pattis (144 Conn. App. 79). Submitted on briefs May 10—officially released July 6, 2021