10 South Florida Lawyers Disciplined
The Florida Supreme Court disbarred three attorneys, issued disciplinary revocations for three others and suspended four lawyers since Oct. 24, according to data released Tuesday.
November 26, 2019 at 04:45 PM
4 minute read
The Florida Supreme Court disciplined 10 South Florida attorneys, returning three disbarments, three disciplinary revocations and four suspensions since Oct. 24, according to data released Tuesday.
Miami bankruptcy attorney Sonia Yvette Amador was disbarred and ordered to pay a total of $3,585 in restitution to two clients for allegedly receiving retainers without diligently communicating and pursuing their cases. Amador was also accused of misrepresenting the status of her discipline case, and not responding to the Florida Bar's inquiries.
Byron Gregory Petersen in Boca Raton also lost his law license for continuing to hold himself out as a lawyer after being suspended. He was suspended for three years in 2018 over allegations he violated 14 bar rules in a dispute over attorney fees with clients.
Plantation attorney Scott David Rubinchik will be disbarred Dec. 7 following a suspension. He faced bar complaints for allegedly failing to answer the appellate court multiple times in two criminal appeals, misrepresenting the status of cases to clients, and failing to take sufficient action. In one case, the Florida Bar alleged Rubinchik modified child support for a client, but never drafted an order as requested by the appellate court, and took no action in the case for five years.
Rubinchik said he felt the grievance case was inherently unfair, and stressed that none of the allegations harmed or unfairly prejudiced the complainants.
"The specific bar matters were more a product of a high-volume solo practice and office management issues. For the entirety of my legal career I was a highly skilled, capable, competent and diligent legal practitioner. The remedy of disbarment is misapplied in this instance," Rubinchik said. "For 23 years I put my clients' needs above my own, rarely taking a day off, whether on vacation, the hospital or my daughter's activities. The positive and good that I have done far outweigh any bad."
Criminal defense attorney Nelson Israel Alfaro in Coral Gables has agreed to a disciplinary revocation that will allow him to seek readmission in five years after he was indicted for conspiracy, obstruction of justice and making false statements to a federal law enforcement officer.
Alfaro is accused of running a scheme with another Miami resident to charge tens of thousands of dollars for information from a defendant who'd already been sentenced, fraudulently presenting that as "cooperation" and "substantial assistance" to push for a sentence reduction. He faces a maximum penalty of 35 years in prison if found guilty.
Homestead lawyer Philip Jay Reichenthal, admitted to the bar in 1968, has accepted a disciplinary revocation over his work as an escrow agent for a private bitcoin agreement. He allegedly received more than $2 million as but failed to properly disburse the money, most of which allegedly went to an unrelated third party. Disciplinary revocation is tantamount to disbarment.
Reichenthal said he'd never had a bar complaint before the 12 that resulted from one transaction.
"I did not profit from it and I am too ill to fight it," Reichenthal said.
North Miami personal injury lawyer Ilya Torchinsky also received a disciplinary revocation over allegations he neglected cases and wrongly converted client trust funds. He's since agreed to an audit, and has returned the converted money.
Miami civil trial attorney Armando Gustavo Hernandez was suspended for six months for allegedly lying to shareholders about representing clients outside of Rumberger, Kirk & Caldwell, where he worked as an associate. A referee found Hernandez deleted, exported and edited files related to those cases, which he had stored in his firm's system. He's since expressed remorse and relinquished all fees from the cases.
Miami attorney Leroy G. Lee has been suspended until further notice for submitting a late response to show why he shouldn't be held in contempt for leaving Florida Bar inquiries unanswered. Lee's suspension will continue until he answers the bar.
Personal injury lawyer Janet Peralta Lucente in Hollywood was also suspended for not answering bar inquiries and a subsequent order to show cause. Likewise, Boynton Beach attorney Les Schneiderman is suspended until he answers the bar's inquiries.
More discipline:
This content has been archived. It is available through our partners, LexisNexis® and Bloomberg Law.
To view this content, please continue to their sites.
Not a Lexis Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
Not a Bloomberg Law Subscriber?
Subscribe Now
NOT FOR REPRINT
© 2025 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
You Might Like
View AllFlorida’s Civil Procedure Rules: Attorneys Foresee More Settlements Amid Time Challenges
3 minute readHolland & Knight Promotes 42 Lawyers to Partner, Prioritizing Corporate Practices
3 minute readData Breach Lawsuit Against Byte Federal Among 1,500 Targeting Companies in 2024
4 minute readTrending Stories
- 1'Pull Back the Curtain': Ex-NFL Players Seek Discovery in Lawsuit Over League's Disability Plan
- 2Tensions Run High at Final Hearing Before Manhattan Congestion Pricing Takes Effect
- 3Improper Removal to Fed. Court Leads to $100K Bill for Blue Cross Blue Shield
- 4Michael Halpern, Beloved Key West Attorney, Dies at 72
- 5Burr & Forman, Smith Gambrell & Russell Promote More to Partner This Year
Who Got The Work
Michael G. Bongiorno, Andrew Scott Dulberg and Elizabeth E. Driscoll from Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr have stepped in to represent Symbotic Inc., an A.I.-enabled technology platform that focuses on increasing supply chain efficiency, and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The case, filed Oct. 2 in Massachusetts District Court by the Brown Law Firm on behalf of Stephen Austen, accuses certain officers and directors of misleading investors in regard to Symbotic's potential for margin growth by failing to disclose that the company was not equipped to timely deploy its systems or manage expenses through project delays. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Nathaniel M. Gorton, is 1:24-cv-12522, Austen v. Cohen et al.
Who Got The Work
Edmund Polubinski and Marie Killmond of Davis Polk & Wardwell have entered appearances for data platform software development company MongoDB and other defendants in a pending shareholder derivative lawsuit. The action, filed Oct. 7 in New York Southern District Court by the Brown Law Firm, accuses the company's directors and/or officers of falsely expressing confidence in the company’s restructuring of its sales incentive plan and downplaying the severity of decreases in its upfront commitments. The case is 1:24-cv-07594, Roy v. Ittycheria et al.
Who Got The Work
Amy O. Bruchs and Kurt F. Ellison of Michael Best & Friedrich have entered appearances for Epic Systems Corp. in a pending employment discrimination lawsuit. The suit was filed Sept. 7 in Wisconsin Western District Court by Levine Eisberner LLC and Siri & Glimstad on behalf of a project manager who claims that he was wrongfully terminated after applying for a religious exemption to the defendant's COVID-19 vaccine mandate. The case, assigned to U.S. Magistrate Judge Anita Marie Boor, is 3:24-cv-00630, Secker, Nathan v. Epic Systems Corporation.
Who Got The Work
David X. Sullivan, Thomas J. Finn and Gregory A. Hall from McCarter & English have entered appearances for Sunrun Installation Services in a pending civil rights lawsuit. The complaint was filed Sept. 4 in Connecticut District Court by attorney Robert M. Berke on behalf of former employee George Edward Steins, who was arrested and charged with employing an unregistered home improvement salesperson. The complaint alleges that had Sunrun informed the Connecticut Department of Consumer Protection that the plaintiff's employment had ended in 2017 and that he no longer held Sunrun's home improvement contractor license, he would not have been hit with charges, which were dismissed in May 2024. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Jeffrey A. Meyer, is 3:24-cv-01423, Steins v. Sunrun, Inc. et al.
Who Got The Work
Greenberg Traurig shareholder Joshua L. Raskin has entered an appearance for boohoo.com UK Ltd. in a pending patent infringement lawsuit. The suit, filed Sept. 3 in Texas Eastern District Court by Rozier Hardt McDonough on behalf of Alto Dynamics, asserts five patents related to an online shopping platform. The case, assigned to U.S. District Judge Rodney Gilstrap, is 2:24-cv-00719, Alto Dynamics, LLC v. boohoo.com UK Limited.
Featured Firms
Law Offices of Gary Martin Hays & Associates, P.C.
(470) 294-1674
Law Offices of Mark E. Salomone
(857) 444-6468
Smith & Hassler
(713) 739-1250