Court Refused To Accept Dismissal Of Appeal, Stating: “The Lack Of Civility Demonstrated In This Case Is A Matter Of Public Interest.”

Two paragraphs of the opinion best describe what happened: “We find FCI’s conduct with respect to this entire case demonstrative of a particularly nasty type of scorched earth tactics. A purportedly stolen hard drive, which was placed in the hands of defendants solely for litigation purposes, has resulted in an attempt to disqualify counsel and two efforts to depose counsel in the underlying case, a police report, complaints to the State Bar of California, and this entirely derivative and unmeritorious second lawsuit. FCI’s overreach does not suggest zealousness or righteousness, but a calculated effort to undermine the parties in the underlying case by turning their attorneys into fellow defendants.  [¶] . . . [¶]Less than 48 hours prior to oral argument, the parties notified us they had reached a settlement. The court, however, declines the parties’ request to dismiss the appeal. This is a particularly egregious SLAPP, filed against defendants for the sole ‘crime’ of representing their clients in the underlying action. The lack of civility demonstrated in this case is a matter of public interest. Moreover, while we cannot be certain, it appears that FCI deliberately decided to keep this action pending until the last possible moment in order to avoid the opinion we write today. We therefore decide in defendants’ favor and publish this case as an example to the legal community of the kind of behavior the bench and the bar together must continually strive to eradicate.” (Finton Construction, Inc. v. Bidna & Keys, APLC (Cal. App. Fourth Dist., Div. 3; June 29, 2015) 238 Cal.App.4th 200 [190 Cal.Rptr.3d 1].)