Courtesy of the Delaware Business Court Insider, we provide our article that appeared in the April 21, 2021 edition on an important topic for Delaware litigators.
No Such Thing as Local Counsel in Delaware Court of Chancery
By: Francis G.X. Pileggi* and Chauna A. Abner**
This is a compilation of selected key Delaware court decisions, rules, and customs to guide out-of-state attorneys admitted to practice in Delaware pro hac vice, or non-Delaware lawyers who collaborate on Delaware litigation with Delaware counsel. (This is an updated version of an article I co-authored with Kevin F. Brady many years ago.)
The Role of Delaware Counsel
The Delaware Court of Chancery does not recognize the limited role of “local counsel” to the extent that it implies a less than plenary role of Delaware counsel—even if non-Delaware counsel are overseeing the litigation or taking the “laboring oar.” See, e.g., Wood v. U.S. Bank Nat’l Ass’n, 2021 Del. Ch. LEXIS 21, at *19 (Del. Ch. Feb. 4, 2021) (“‘Even when forwarding counsel has been admitted pro hac vice and is taking a lead role in the case, the Court of Chancery does not recognize the role of purely local counsel.’”) (quoting James v. National Finance, LLC, 2014 Del. Ch. LEXIS 254, at *12 (Del. Ch. Dec. 5, 2014)); State Line Ventures, LLC v. RBS Citizens, N.A., 2009 Del. Ch. LEXIS 233, at * 1 (Del. Ch. Dec. 2, 2009).
The Court of Chancery emphasizes that a Delaware attorney of record is responsible for every action taken by his or her client—from the content of the pleadings to the fulfillment of discovery obligations. “[T]he Delaware lawyer who appears in an action always remains responsible to the Court for the case and its presentation,” without reference to who drafted the document at issue or was responsible for certain actions. James, 2014 Del. Ch. LEXIS 254, at *38. See generally, Principles of Professionalism for Delaware Lawyers.
The Court of Chancery has published Guidelines to Help Lawyers Practicing in the Court of Chancery, which make clear that the concept of “local counsel” does not exist in Delaware as a role with less than full responsibility. Delaware Court of Chancery, Guidelines to Help Lawyers Practicing in the Court of Chancery (2012), http://courts.state.de.us/Chancery/docs/CompleteGuidelines.pdf
Those Guidelines provide in part as follows:
Role of Delaware Counsel
- The concept of “local counsel” whose role is limited to administrative or ministerial matters has no place in the Court of Chancery. The Delaware lawyers who appear in a case are responsible to the Court for the case and its presentation.
- If a Delaware lawyer signs a pleading, submits a brief, or signs a discovery request or response, it is the Delaware lawyer who is taking the positions set forth therein and making the representations to the Court. It does not matter whether the paper was initially or substantially drafted by a firm serving as “Of Counsel.”
- The members of the Court recognize that Delaware counsel and forwarding counsel frequently allocate responsibility for work and that, in some cases, the allocation will be heavily weighted to forwarding counsel. The members of the Court recognize that forwarding counsel may have primary responsibility for a matter from the client’s perspective. This does not alter the Delaware lawyer’s responsibility for the positions taken and the presentation of the case.
- Non-Delaware counsel shall not directly make filings or initiate contact with the Court, absent extraordinary circumstances. Such contact must be conducted by Delaware counsel.
- It is not acceptable for a Delaware lawyer to submit a letter from forwarding counsel under a cover letter saying, in substance, “Here is a letter from my forwarding counsel.”
Attorneys Admitted Pro Hac Vice
The Delaware courts also strictly regulate the pro hac vice admission of out-of-state attorneys, and the rules require a Delaware attorney moving the admission of an out-of-state attorney to determine and certify to the admitting court that the lawyer to be admitted is reputable and competent. See Delaware Supreme Court and Delaware State Bar Association, Principles of Professionalism for Delaware Lawyers, at ¶ C (Nov. 1, 2003), http://courts.delaware.gov/forms/download.aspx?id=39428.
Out-of-state counsel also must certify that they have reviewed Delaware’s Principles of Professionalism for Delaware Lawyers. Even after being admitted to practice in Delaware pro hac vice, an out-of-state attorney may not: (i) sign pleadings; (ii) file documents with the Court; (iii) communicate directly with the Court; or (iv) attend proceedings without Delaware counsel (including calls with the court, mediation and arbitration proceedings), without express permission by the Court. See Forte Capital Partners, LLC v. Bennett, Del. Ch., C.A. No. 1495-N (2005) (rejecting pleadings, motions, and letters to the Court signed by out-of-state counsel; also rejecting the appearance before Court in a teleconference by an attorney admitted pro hac vice when Delaware counsel was not present for the conference).
In 2013, a non-Delaware lawyer was subject to a Private Admonition for participating in a conference call with the Court–without his Delaware attorney. However, out-of-state counsel who are admitted pro hac vice may take or defend depositions in the pending action without the presence of their Delaware counsel. See Griffin v. Sigma Alpha Mu Fraternity, 2012 Del. Super. LEXIS 119 (Del. Super. Ct. Mar. 15, 2012) (holding that out-of-state counsel is not permitted to question a deposition witness in a Delaware action—even if “supervised” by Delaware counsel—”unless, and until, counsel is admitted pro hac vice.”)
The Court of Chancery issued an Order to clarify that only members of the Delaware Bar can be registered with the eFiling system as eFilers and to receive eFiling notifications by email. See Delaware Court of Chancery, Standing Order (Aug. 5, 2008) http://courts.delaware.gov/chancery/docs/ ChanceryStandingOrder_Out-Of-StateAttorneys_080408.pdf
The Court of Chancery also issued a notice informing Delaware lawyers that it is a violation of Rule 79.1 to share their eFiling passwords or add non-Delaware lawyers to the electronic service list.
An out-of-state attorney’s pro hac vice status may be revoked upon a motion to the Court. See State ex rel. Secretary of the DOT v. Mumford, 731 A.2d 831, 835 (Del. Super. Ct. 1999) (revoking the pro hac vice admission of out-of-state attorney who “demonstrated a lack of civility and professionalism by ‘coaching the witnesses’ during the depositions, by failing to control or attempt to control the objectionable conduct of his client, and by encouraging the [inappropriate] conduct of his client.”). Inappropriate conduct by out-of-state attorneys will not be tolerated by the courts, and can lead to revocation of an attorney’s pro hac status and submission of specific matters to the bar of the attorney’s home state as well as Delaware’s Office of Disciplinary Counsel. Manning v. Vellardita, 2012 Del. Ch. LEXIS 59 (Del. Ch. Mar. 28, 2012) (holding that while out-of-state attorney’s failure to fully disclose law firm affiliation “fell short of the level of candor this Court expects of attorneys practicing in Delaware,” there was no basis to revoke attorney’s pro hac vice status; however, Court referred the matter to the bar association of attorney’s home state and the Delaware Office of Disciplinary Counsel).
Delaware’s pro hac vice rules apply with equal force to Delaware-barred attorneys who do not maintain an office in Delaware. Maintaining an office in Delaware is a prerequisite to serving as an attorney of record in Delaware pursuant to Sup. Ct. R. 12(a)(i); if a Delaware attorney retires, or practices in another state, and his firm does not maintain a bona fide Delaware office, then that attorney will need to be admitted pro hac vice before filing documents with or arguing before any Delaware court.
The Delaware Supreme Court’s Office of Disciplinary Counsel has compiled materials and case excerpts relevant to attorneys admitted pro hac vice. These materials provide guidance on issues frequently encountered by Delaware counsel when assisting out-of-state counsel, as well as guidance for counsel admitted pro hac vice, including:
- Out-of-state counsel’s desire to impermissibly limit the scope of retention of Delaware Counsel;
- Identifying the client: distinguishing the underlying client in the litigation from out-of-state counsel who directs Delaware counsel and pays the bills;
- Special consideration required when both Delaware counsel and out-of-state counsel are associated with the same firm, including the proper form of signature blocks; and
- Procedures for Delaware-barred attorneys who practice out of state and do not maintain a bona fide Delaware office.
As a supplement to the extensive materials provided by the Office of Disciplinary Counsel, the following cases provide distinct examples of attorney conduct that will not be tolerated by the Delaware courts, and how the courts address such conduct:
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- Sample v. Morgan, 935 A.2d 1046 (Del. Ch. 2007) (holding that a non-Delaware lawyer and her law firm could be sued in Delaware for providing advice and services to a Delaware corporation, its directors, and its managers on matters of Delaware corporate law, including the preparation of a certificate of incorporation, which they provided to a service agent to be filed in Delaware).
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- Beck v. Atl. Coast PLC, 868 A.2d 840 (Del. Ch. 2005) (sanctioning and fining out-of-state counsel under Rule 11 and Rule 37 for filing a deceptive complaint, improperly certifying that the plaintiff was fit to serve as class representative, and intentionally withholding relevant non-privileged documents responsive to discovery requests).
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- Auriga Capital Corp. v. Gatz Props., LLC, 2012 Del. Ch. LEXIS 19 (Del. Ch. Jan. 27, 2012) (shifting fees where plaintiff and his counsel acted in bad faith by “splatter[ing] the record with a series of legally and factually implausible assertions,” allowing defendant to collect responsive documents without legal supervision, and failing to preserve relevant documents and information).
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- Griffin v. The Sigma Alpha Mu Fraternity, C.A. No. 09C-04-067 JAP (Del. Super. Mar. 15, 2012) (imposing a $500 fine against plaintiffs for allowing out-of-state counsel, who was not admitted pro hac vice in Delaware, to conduct a deposition in a Delaware case).
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- In re Asbestos Litig. Limited to Ronald Carlton, C.A. No. 10C-08-216 ABS (Del. Super. Ct. May 14, 2012) (warning Delaware counsel of possible sanctions and/or rejection of documents filed for failure to adhere to the requirement that all correspondence to the Court be submitted on Delaware counsel’s letterhead and signed by Delaware counsel).
Electronic Discovery Duties
Electronic data preservation, collection, and production are also governed by the Delaware courts. Both the District of Delaware and the Court of Chancery provide guidelines on preserving electronically stored information (ESI) on their websites.
The District of Delaware implemented a Default Standard for Discovery, Including Discovery of Electronically Stored Information (Dec. 8, 2011), http://www.ded.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/Chambers/ SLR/Misc/EDiscov.pdf, and a Default Standard for Access to Source Code (Dec. 8, 2011), http://www.ded.uscourts.gov/sites/default/files/Chambers/SLR/Misc/DefStdAccess.pdf. These standards require counsel for all parties to confer on several topics concerning the production of ESI to avoid costly litigation of discovery disputes.
The Court of Chancery has adopted Guidelines for Preservation of Electronically Stored Information that require counsel to develop and oversee a process to preserve all relevant ESI. See Delaware Court of Chancery, Guidelines for Preservation of Electronically Stored Information (Jan. 18, 2011), http://courts.delaware.gov/forms/download.aspx?id=50988. This process should include, at a minimum, identifying all custodians of potentially relevant information, disseminating litigation hold notices to those custodians, and conferring with opposing counsel to discuss whether they will limit or forgo discovery of ESI.
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These guiding Delaware principles are further refined by the individual courts, each having its own rules for the admission of out-of-state attorneys, and the requirements of Delaware counsel. In addition, Delaware charges fees on an annual basis to renew a pro hac vice motion to enable out-of-state counsel to maintain his or her pro hac vice status in a particular case.
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*Francis G.X. Pileggi is the managing partner of the Delaware office of Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard & Smith LLP, and the primary author of the Delaware Corporate and Commercial Litigation Blog at www.delawarelitigation.com.