USCA1 Opinion

July 30, 1993

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS

FOR THE FIRST CIRCUIT
___________________

No.

92-1756
IN RE: ANTONIO L. CORDOVA-GONZALEZ,
Appellant.
_________________

No.

92-8038
IN RE:
ANTONIO L. CORDOVA-GONZALEZ,
Petitioner.
____________________
ERRATA SHEET

The opinion of
amended as follows:

this

On page 7, line 10:

court issued

on

June 30,

delete the word "his".

1993,

is

July 1, 1993

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS

FOR THE FIRST CIRCUIT
___________________

No. 92-1756
IN RE: ANTONIO L. CORDOVA-GONZALEZ,
Appellant.
____________________
No. 92-8038
IN RE:
ANTONIO L. CORDOVA-GONZALEZ
Petitioner.
_____________________
ERRATA SHEET
The opinion of
amended as follows:

this

Court issued

on

June 30,

1993,

is

On cover sheet caption

"Antenio" to "Antonio".

for

No. 92-1756

change

UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS

FOR THE FIRST CIRCUIT

___________________
No. 92-1756

IN RE: ANTONIO L. CORDOVA-GONZALEZ,

the name

Appellant.
__________________
No. 92-8038
IN RE:
ANTONIO L. CORDOVA-GONZALEZ,
Petitioner.
______________________
APPEAL FROM THE UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
FOR THE DISTRICT OF PUERTO RICO
[Hon. Hector M. Laffitte, U.S. District Judge]
___________________
___________________
Before
Breyer, Chief Judge,
___________
Selya and Cyr, Circuit Judges.
______________
___________________
Antonio Cordova-Gonzalez on brief pro se.
________________________
__________________
June 30, 1993
__________________

Per Curiam.
__________

Antonio Cordova Gonzalez

the United States

Rico.

District Court for the District

Cordova appealed

Cordova to

that decision.

show cause why we should

The matters

were consolidated.

court's order,

was disbarred by

This

of Puerto

court ordered

not disbar him as well.

We now affirm

and disbar Cordova from

the district

practice before this

court.
I
_
Cordova does not seriously dispute the facts as found by
Magistrate
Judge

Arenas, the

committee

Laffitte, and the district

committee that,

of lawyers
court.

with respect to the

appointed

We

by

agree with the

first charge, involving

the provision of bail on behalf of Cordova's client Irma Cruz

Vazquez, Cordova
Local Rule

may not "technically" have

401.1(C)(3).

standing bail for

that Cordova's

his client,

wife

never conclusively

The

violated D.P.R.

rule prohibits
but in this

actually posted
determined that

a lawyer
case it

the bond,

from

appears

and it

Cordova owned or

was

had an

interest in the property that his wife put up to secure Cruz'

release.

This

technicality,

however,

does

not

absolve

Cordova of all culpability in the matter: the committee found

that Cordova's wife posted bail "under his auspices and
his

express concurrence,"

that was

subject to the

and did

so by

jurisdiction of

with

pledging property
the United

States

Bankruptcy Court in bankruptcy proceedings that involved both

-2-

Mr.

and

effort
release

Mrs. Cordova.
to deceive

the

through the

Cordova therefore
district court

pledge

of property

connived

by obtaining
that

at an
Cruz's

was not

the

pledgor's to give, and thus violated ABA Model Rule 8.4(d) by

engaging in conduct that is prejudicial to the administration
of justice.1
With respect
district court

to the

second charge,

that Cordova

when he borrowed $100,000

we agree with

violated ABA Model

the

Rule 1.8(a)

from his client Jose Lopez-Nieves.

Rule 1.8(a) prohibits a lawyer from

entering into a business

transaction

among other

terms of

with a

client unless,

the transaction

are fair

things, the

and reasonable

and "are

fully disclosed and transmitted in writing to the client in a

manner

which can

Cordova borrowed

be reasonably

understood by

money from Lopez-Nieves

the client."

without disclosing

to his client (a) that he did not own the property pledged as
collateral, (b) that his wife -- who did own the collateral -

and he

were involved

that the collateral

in bankruptcy proceedings,

was subject to

and (c)

the jurisdiction of

the

bankruptcy court, which had not approved the pledge.

As

to the

third charge,

containing vitriolic

that Cordova

slurs on

filed pleadings

judges and lawyers

that were

____________________
1.
The American Bar Association Model Rules of Professional
Conduct govern the conduct of lawyers who practice before the
United States District Court in Puerto Rico.
Local Rule
211.4(B).
-3-

"degrading to

the law, the

bar and the Court,"

we will not

here.

the

repeat Cordova's

invective

adequate legally

to support the

that the

pleadings

incorporation
judges

and

Cordova

of abusive and
opposing

We

do find

record

district court's conclusion

submitted

"show

an

incessant

disrespectful language against

counsel, replete

vituperative statements in contravention

with

offensive

of Rules 3.5(c) and

8.4(d) of the Model Rules of Professional Conduct."

II
__

and

We
Cordova

review
only

the
for

district
abuse

of

court's

decision

discretion,

to

In re Grievance
_________________

Committee of United States District Court, 847 F.2d

___________________________________________
(2d Cir.
1986);

1988); In re Evans,
____________
In re Olkon, 795
____________

801 F.2d 703,

F.2d 1379,

disbar

57, 61

706 (4th

1381 (8th

Cir.

Cir. 1986);

Standing Committee on Discipline v. Ross, 735 F.2d 1168, 1172

________________________________
____
(9th Cir. 1984), and we find none here.
of

some

thirty

years

experience,

disciplinary proceedings.
F.2d 16 (1st Cir.

and

no

is a lawyer
stranger

to

In re Cordova Gonzalez, 726

_______________________

1984); In re Antonio Cordova Gonzalez, 90

_______________________________

J.T.S. 28 (P.R. 1990).

Nieves show a

See
___

Cordova

lack of

His dealings

with his client Lopez-

consideration for the

duty of

trust

between lawyer and client that finds expression in Model Rule

1.8(a).

Standing alone, such a

significant punishment.
P.2d 1385, 1387 (Colo.

transgression would warrant

See, e.g., People v.

__________ ______

Bennett, 843
_______

1993) (lawyer disbarred for borrowing

-4-

from clients); Lipson v. State Bar, 810 P.2d 1007 (Cal. 1991)
______
_________
(lawyer suspended).

Here Cordova's

client comes accompanied

and his

by his misconduct in

verbal attacks upon opposing counsel

Cordova had been

warned on

different courts, that

expose

misconduct toward

him to

at least two

his

the Cruz case

and the court.

occasions, by

two

further intemperate accusations would

disciplinary action.

He

continued

to make

vitriolic and, as far as the record shows, unfounded personal

assaults.

Attorneys

have

disbarred for such conduct.

at 706;

In re Whiteside,
_______________

on a

number

of occasions

been

See, e.g., In re Evans, 801 F.2d

_________ ___________
386 F.2d

805 (2d Cir.

1967); see
___

generally, ABA/BNA Lawyers' Manual on Professional Conduct at

_________
101:609 and cases cited therein.

We therefore conclude that,

in this case, the punishment is

not out of proportion to the

offense.
III
___
We reject Cordova's claim that he was denied due process
during

the

against him.
been called
550

investigation
Although

and

resolution

of

the

attorney discipline proceedings

"quasi-criminal," In re Ruffalo, 390

______________

(1968), the

due

charges

process rights

of

have

U.S. 544,

an attorney

in

disciplinary proceeding "do not extend so far as to guarantee

the

full panoply

criminal case."

of

rights afforded

to

an accused

Razatos v. Colorado Supreme Court,

_______
______________________

1429, 1435 (10th

in

746 F.2d

Cir. 1984) (quoting People v. Harfmann, 638

______
________

-5-

P.2d 745, 747 (Col.

1981)).

See also Rosenthal

________ _________

of Supreme Court, 910 F.2d 561,

_________________
Daley, 549 F.2d
_____

v. Justices
________

564 (9th Cir.

469, 476 (7th Cir. 1977) and

1990); In re
_____
cases cited at

footnote 6; Fitzsimmons v. State Bar of California, 667

___________
_______________________
700,

703-4

(Cal.

1983).

discipline "is entitled to

notice

and

an opportunity

Rather,

an

959 F.2d

proceeding to
the

323, 335

to

be

heard."

(1st Cir.

an opportunity

to be

Rosenthal
_________

v.

See also Lowe v.

________ ____

1992) (due

revoke physician's license

charges and

facing

procedural due process, including

Justices of Supreme Court, 910 F.2d at 564.

_________________________
Scott,
_____

attorney

P.2d

process in

requires notice of
heard).

The record

shows

that Cordova

him, and had an

received notice

of the

charges against

opportunity to respond to those

charges, at

every stage of the proceedings.

We also reject Cordova's claim that two of
court

judges who

took part

in the

decision to

should have refrained from

participation.

Cordova filed

to disqualify Judges

six motions

Perez-Gimenez.2
or

disbar him

At various times,
Laffitte or

However, his subjective impressions of bias

prejudice, no

matter how

little, and such weak,

that we

the district

find so

objective corroboration in the record

see no reason to

part in the disciplinary

vehemently expressed,

deem the judges' decision

to take

proceedings an abuse of discretion.

____________________
2. Several of the motions also sought the disqualification
of Judge Fuste, who recused himself and did not sign the
opinion that disbarred Cordova.
-6-

See Blizard v.
___ _______

Frechette, 601 F.2d

_________

1979).
IV

1217, 1220-21 (1st

Cir.

__
Under Fed. R.
court

of

appeals]

suspended or
record

member

the member will

the

court [of

disciplinary

substantial

that any

when "it is
of

disbarred from practice

. . .,

disbarment by
prior

App. P. 46(b),

bar has

in any other

be subject to
appeals]."

proceedings

relevance in

its

shown to

in

determining

been

court of

suspension or

"[T]he record

district
whether

[a

court are
an

of
of

attorney

should be disbarred from practice before" a court of appeals.

In re Evans, 834 F.2d 90,
____________

91 (4th Cir. 1987).

neither disproved the charges

Rule

46(b)

sanction

as the

dealings with
repeated

requires, why
district

against him, nor explained, as

we

should

court.

his Lopez-Nieves

disrespect for

Cordova has

not impose

the

same

Cordova's misconduct

and Cruz, and

the tribunals

in

his flagrant,

before which

he has

practiced, warrant his disbarment.

The decision of the district court is affirmed.
________
is disbarred from practice before this court.
_________

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Cordova