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On August 11, 2011, P, represented by Shahian, sued D and its dealer, Galpin Motors, Inc., under the Song-Beverly Consumer Warranty Act for defects in a 2008 Lincoln Navigator. On September 16, 2011, D's counsel sent a letter to Shahian, requesting his withdrawal from the litigation on the grounds that he had previously defended D in lemon law cases. Shahian refused to withdraw. D filed a motion to disqualify Shahian and his law firm. The motion was accompanied by the declaration of Brian Takahashi, a partner at the law firm Bowman and Brooke, which employed Shahian between June 2004 and July 2007. Bowman and Brooke were D's corporate counsel, and during his tenure there, Shahian worked on 150 cases, including California lemon law cases. According to Takahashi, Shahian was “privy to confidential client communications and information relating to the defense of” such cases, as well as to “pre-litigation strategies, tactics, and case handling procedures.” Shahian provided unspecified “input” to D's Office of General Counsel and Consumer Affairs and communicated regularly with D about lemon law cases. The court granted D's motion, holding that the legal issues in lemon law cases are substantially similar, and it presumed that Shahian's previous work exposed him to confidential information about D's handling of such cases. P appealed.

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