
N.Y. Panel Disbars Defense Lawyer for 14 Actions
Anthony Lin
New York Law Journal
08-14-2006
A lawyer accused of providing an incompetent defense in a high-profile
murder case last year has been disbarred for misleading and stealing
from four other clients.
Carlos Perez-Olivo made headlines last November after he allegedly
forgot part of his closing argument in defense of Elio Cruz, a waiter
who was subsequently convicted in the 2004 shooting of his wife's lover
on a Manhattan subway platform.
The Appellate Division, 1st Department, said Perez-Olivo had committed
at least 14 acts of attorney misconduct in his representation of four
other criminal defendants. The counts included his neglect of cases,
his refusal to return unearned retainers and bail money, his use of a
non-refundable retainer agreement and his failure to avoid conflicts of
interest.
Perez-Olivo did not return a call to his Queens office on Thursday.
In Matter of Carlos Perez-Olivo, M-1520, the unanimous court confirmed
a recommendation of disbarment by a disciplinary hearing panel and a
referee. In addition to disbarring Perez-Olivo, the court ordered him
to pay $10,000 in restitution to the sister one of his clients.
In one of the cases cited by the court, Perez-Olivo took $20,500 to
appeal the conviction of a defendant facing incarceration and
deportation. His failure to perfect the appeal led to its dismissal,
after which he asked his client to "withdraw" her appeal on the grounds
that it was frivolous. The client was deported, and Perez-Olivo did not
respond to requests for a partial refund of his fees or an accounting
of his charges.
In two other cases, he refused to return to clients bail money either
given to him to post bond or returned by the court after the resolution
of the case. He took $10,000 to post bail for one client who was
arrested in Pennsylvania, even though he was not admitted to practice
in that state.
Perez-Olivo also was cited for asking a client to sign a retainer
agreement stating that a $10,000 "deposit fee" was "non-refundable
regardless of the time that I spent on this case or if for whatever
reason I am removed from the case."
He was quickly disqualified from representing that client because he
also was trying to represent an alleged co-conspirator in the same
matter. Perez-Olivo refused to return the $10,000 on the grounds that
he had spent 23 hours researching the issue of conflicts of interest.
At the time of Perez-Olivo's representation of Cruz, which was not at
issue in his disciplinary proceeding, The New York Times reported that,
just before the start of deliberations, a juror in the case wrote a
note to Manhattan Supreme Court Justice Carol Berkman complaining about
the lawyer's performance.
The juror, Anne Alexandra Holland, said she was upset that Perez-Olivo
ended his summation by reportedly saying, "There is more, but I've
forgotten it."
According to the Times, Holland said she feared "for anyone else
[Perez-Olivo] is hired to defend." She was replaced as a juror.
Cruz's family said at the time they would appeal his conviction on the
grounds of Perez-Olivo's incompetence. The Legal Aid Society, which is
handling Cruz's appeal, did not return a call for comment.
A graduate of the University of Puerto Rico School of Law, Perez-Olivo
forfeited his license to practice law in Puerto Rico in 2000 after he
failed to answer disciplinary charges against him there.
He also had been previously admonished in New York for similar
misconduct. The appellate panel said his past disciplinary record was
an aggravating factor in favor of his disbarment.
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