The Florida Bar, the state’s guardian for the integrity of the legal profession, announces that the Florida Supreme Court in recent court orders disciplined 24 attorneys, disbarring 12 and suspending 10.
Some attorneys received more than one form of discipline. Two attorneys were placed on probation; two attorneys were publicly reprimanded and two were ordered to pay restitution.
As an official arm of the Florida Supreme Court, The Florida Bar and its Department of Lawyer Regulation are charged with administering a statewide disciplinary system to enforce Supreme Court rules of professional conduct for the 90,000-plus lawyers admitted to practice law in Florida.
Since Aug. 1, 2007, case files have been posted to attorneys’ individual Florida Bar profiles and may be reviewed at and/or downloaded from The Florida Bar’s website, www.floridabar.org.
Court orders are not final until time expires to file a rehearing motion and, if filed, determined. The filing of such a motion does not alter the effective date of the discipline.
Disbarred lawyers may not re-apply for admission for five years. They are required to go through an extensive process that rejects many who apply. It includes a rigorous background check and retaking the bar exam.
Historically, fewer than 5 percent of disbarred lawyers seek readmission.
• Paul Francis Angueira, 1808 NW 126th Ave, Pembroke Pines, disbarred effective immediately, following an Aug. 25 court order. (Admitted to practice: 1997) Further, Angueira shall pay restitution of more than $11,000 to two clients. In several instances, Angueira misappropriated and misused client funds. (Case No. SC11-92)
• Leon Menas Boyajan II, 2303 Highway 44 W., Inverness, suspended for 10 days, effective 30 days from a Sept. 20 court order. Further, upon reinstatement, Boyajan is placed on probation for one year. (Admitted to practice: 1983) Boyajan engaged in a pattern of misconduct in which he missed hearings, ignored requests for documents required by the court and disregarded court orders. (Case No. SC11-641)
• John Patrick Clement, 500 Marbella Circle, North Palm Beach, suspended until further order, effective 30 days from an Aug. 24 court order. (Admitted to practice: 1999) After a DUI arrest in March 2010, Clement was adjudicated guilty in court and on the recommendation of a grievance committee, entered into a three-year rehabilitation contract with Florida Lawyers Assistance Inc. Clement failed to comply with the terms of his FLA contract. He also failed to comply with the conditions of a November 2008 suspension order by holding himself out as eligible to practice law. (Case No. SC11-962)
• Todd Corey Deratany, 503 Fifth Ave., Suite 102, Indialantic, permanently disbarred effective immediately, following a Sept. 13 court order. (Admitted to practice: 2007) Deratany failed to comply with the terms of a March 14 suspension order. In May, Deratany was disbarred for 10 years. He is the subject of numerous disciplinary violations. In several instances, Deratany failed to maintain adequate communication with his clients and in one civil matter, he failed to appear for a trial and did not notify the court or his client regarding his conflict with a pending criminal case. Deratany also made disparaging remarks about another defense attorney during a recorded conversation with an incarcerated former client. (Case No. SC11-976)
• Thomas W. Dvorak, 633 S. Andrews Ave., Suite 402, Fort Lauderdale, suspended for one year, following an Aug. 25 court order. The suspension shall run consecutive to the one-year suspension ordered in June 2010 and is effective retroactive to July 24, 2011. Further, as a condition of his eligibility to apply for reinstatement, Dvorak shall pay restitution totaling about $125,000 to clients in both cases and enter into an agreement with Florida Lawyers Assistance Inc. (Admitted to practice: 2002) Dvorak is the subject of seven Bar investigations. After collecting legal fees from several clients in mortgage loan modifications and real estate foreclosure defense cases, Dvorak failed to keep the clients informed of their cases, failed to competently and diligently represent them and failed to communicate with them. He took little or no action in their cases. (Case No. SC11-1499)
• Timothy C. Foster, P.O. Box 656, Stuart, disbarred, effective 30 days from a Sept. 20 court order. (Admitted to practice: 1991) Foster failed to properly supervise and define roles for the non-lawyer employees who worked at his law office. He also shared legal fees paid to the company with non-lawyers. Foster used a misleading firm name, implying that more than one attorney worked at the firm, when in fact, he was the only lawyer. The website made it appear that several attorneys in numerous states were employed there, when in actuality there was one licensed lawyer that practiced in Florida only. He failed to communicate with and diligently represent his clients, and ultimately terminated their representation while delivering their client files to another firm without advising them. (Case No. SC11-1719)
• Mark S. Gallegos, 12651 S. Dixie Highway, Suite 201, Miami, suspended for 90 days, effective 30 days from a Sept. 2 court order. Further, upon reinstatement, Gallegos is placed on probation for three years. Gallegos is further directed to enter into a contract with Florida Lawyers Assistance, complete continuing legal education requirements in immigration law and attend ethics school. (Admitted to practice: 1983) Gallegos became a delinquent member of The Florida Bar in 2009. He subsequently was hired to represent clients and did not inform them of his status. In several instances, Gallegos failed to provide competent representation to clients. Additionally, he failed to reasonably communicate with them and failed to timely respond to Bar inquiries. (Case No. SC10-2205)
• David Eric Hammer, 1005 N. Marion St., Tampa, disbarred, effective retroactive to Sept. 22, 2010, following an Aug. 30 court order. (Admitted to practice: 2006) Hammer misappropriated client trust funds for his personal use. (Case No. SC10-2029)
• Mary D. Hansen, 4393 S. Ridgewood Ave., Suite 1, Port Orange, suspended until further order, effective 30 days from a Sept. 22 court order. (Admitted to practice: 1981) Hansen was found in contempt for failing to respond to official Bar inquiries regarding a complaint. (Case No. SC11-1124)
• Suzanne Marie Himes, 825 N.E. Second St., Ocala, permanently disbarred effective immediately, following a Sept. 26 court order. (Admitted to practice: 1990) Himes was found in contempt for failure to comply with the conditions of her Dec. 28, 2010, disbarment. Specifically, Himes failed to submit a sworn affidavit to the Bar listing names and addresses of all persons and entities who were furnished a copy of her disbarment order. (Case No. SC11-1439)
• Dwayne Bisford Johnson Sr., 733 Cypress Drive, Apt. A, Lake Park, disbarred effective immediately, following an Aug. 29 court order. (Admitted to practice: 1998) Johnson was found in contempt for continuing to practice law after being suspended. (Case No. SC11-899)
• Larry Elliot Klayman, 2929 Pennsylvania Ave. N.W., No. 35, Washington, D.C., publicly reprimanded following an Aug. 29 court order. (Admitted to practice: 1977) Klayman agreed to submit to mediation through The Florida Bar’s Grievance Mediation Program after a former client filed a complaint alleging that he had failed to provide services in a criminal case for which he was paid a $25,000 retainer. After entering into a mediation agreement, Klayman failed to repay the money in full within the specified time. (Case No. SC11-247).
• Denise Letizia, P.O. Box 7256, Wesley Chapel, disbarred effective 30 days from an Aug. 10 court order. (Admitted to practice: 1993) Letizia engaged in dishonest conduct by using an invalid power of attorney to withdraw more than $100,000 from bank accounts bearing her developmentally disabled brother’s name. She also demonstrated a pattern of misconduct regarding the representation of her brother and in the subsequent disciplinary proceedings. (Case No. SC09-1308)
• Jane Marie Letwin, 14251 S.W. 175th St., Miami, suspended for one year, followed by three years of probation after an Oct. 1 court order. (Admitted to practice: 1993) Letwin sent an improper and inaccurate solicitation letter to more than 900 people, meant to induce them to hire her to represent them in an alleged class action lawsuit. (Case No. SC09-2360)
• James Robert Mann, 1220 16th Street, Miami, disbarred effective immediately, following an Aug. 12 court order. (Admitted to practice: 1997) In several instances, a Bar auditor found trust account irregularities because of misuse of client funds. In one case, a client gave Mann $5,000 to fund a settlement agreement. Instead of holding the funds in his trust account as required, Mann used the money to satisfy his own unrelated personal and business obligations. (Case No. SC10-2318)
• Roderick Lynn McGee, 4631 N.W. 31st. St., Fort Lauderdale, disbarred effective immediately, following an Aug. 31 court order. (Admitted to practice: 1974) McGee was sanctioned for his continued contempt of court. He also failed to respond to numerous official Bar inquiries. (Case No. SC11-1221))
• Michael Joseph McNerney, 796 N. Rio Vista Blvd., Fort Lauderdale, disbarred effective immediately, following a Sept. 20 court order. (Admitted to practice: 1973) McNerney pleaded guilty in court to conspiracy to commit mail and wire fraud, a felony. (Case No. SC11-1145).
• William Timothy O’Toole, 1489 W. Palmetto Park Road, Suite 494, Boca Raton, suspended until further order, following a July 25 court order. (Admitted to practice: 1992) O’Toole is the subject of 20 Bar disciplinary matters. According to a petition for emergency suspension, O’Toole appeared to be causing great public harm by failing to properly communicate with clients and failing to diligently handle their cases. O’Toole allowed nonlawyers to improperly solicit clients on his behalf for loan modifications and foreclosure defense on a nationwide basis, despite the fact he can only practice law in Florida. He also split fees with nonlawyers, a violation of Bar rules. (Case No. SC11-1384)
• John Steele Patterson, P.O. Box 130, Wauchula, suspended for 91 days effective immediately, following a Sept. 12 court order. (Admitted to practice: 1998) Patterson was held in contempt for failing to comply with the conditions of an April 25 suspension order. Specifically, Patterson failed to submit a sworn affidavit to the Bar listing the names and addresses of all persons and entities that were furnished a copy of his suspension order. (Case No. SC11-1307)
• Julio Antonio Rodriguez, 15485 Eagle Nest Lane, Suite 110, Hialeah, disbarred retroactive to July 5, following a Sept. 12 court order. (Admitted to practice: 1993) Rodriguez pleaded guilty in court to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud, a felony. (SC11-1318)
• Scott M. Sandler, 2701 S. Bayshore Drive, Suite 402, publicly reprimanded following an Aug. 25 court order. (Admitted to practice: 1985) Contrary to Bar rules, Sandler deposited client funds into his trust accounts that were not properly designated IOTA accounts. Although there was no mishandling or malfeasance, Sandler left his own fees in the same account along with the client funds for a lengthy period of time. (Case No. SC11-1530)
• Jeffrey Alan Schwarz, 801 N.E. 167th Street, North Miami Beach, suspended until further order, following a Sept. 27 court order. (Admitted to practice: 1976) After being retained for $8,500 to represent two clients on charges of drug trafficking charges, Schwarz failed to adequately represent them. Schwarz neither met nor communicated with clients while they were in custody. Schwarz also allowed a non-lawyer assistant to communicate with the clients’ families and accept money for representation. The clients testified that the paralegal told them he was their lawyer and they believed that he was representing them. (Case No. SC09-766)
• Dorothy Mae Walker, 349 S.E. 3rd St., Belle Glade, permanently disbarred effective immediately, following an Aug. 29 court order. (Admitted to practice: 1981) Walker, who was disbarred in 1988, was found in contempt for continuing to practice law. (Case No. SC11-873)
• Susan Madeline Weinberg, P.O. Box 812602, Boca Raton, suspended for 91 days, effective 30 days from a Sept. 20 court order. (Admitted to practice: 1985) Weinberg participated in insurance fraud.
Over a period of approximately seven years, Weinberg filled prescriptions via her physician husband for her adult daughter, who was uninsured. (Case No. SC11-140)