howard dickstein

Preliminary notes:

1. Redacted FBI report shown below.

2. The report unfairly creates the impression that YR's demand letter to Jeannine English was sent in connection with CaliforniaALL financial scheme.

3. Per Yr, the reason CaliforniaALL came-up during the conversation with FBI Special Agent Bell was because of an initial impression FBI Special Agent Bell had called to discuss CaliforniaALL financial scheme.

4. Obviously, the demand letter was only in connection with the State Bar of California intentional mishandling of the Ninth Circuit matter of In Re Girardi, potential business relationship between Howard Dickstein (husband of Jeannine English) and Thomas Girardi, conflicts of interest, lack of disclosures, etc. See YR's involvement in matter of In Re Girardi HERE

5. Per Yr, had he wanted to unfairly impose on Jeannine English and Howard Dickstein, he would have confront them with allegations that Thomas Girardi and Bill Lockeyer "secretly own" shares in Indian Casinos that are represented by Howard Dickstein. Hear explosive audio HERE

6. Per YR, "I explained to the FBI agent that in my mind the email to Ms. English constituted a demand letter. However, the agent stated that this was incorrect because, according to his understanding, a suit has to be filed first and only later can settlement negotiations begin. As such, I immediately and spontaneously informed the agent that I would withdraw the communication. He stated that this will be very much appreciated, and that he was certain the attorney who asked him to call me would also be appreciative , and that it will "go a long way" to resolving the matter. "

7. YR believes the "Demand Letter" did not rise to level of extortion/attempted extortion because there was never a wrongful use of force or fear or threat to: A- use force or threats of using force to injure a person or property, B- accuse anyone of a crime C-threat to reveal a secret. Nevertheless, YR plans to fully comply with the promise he had given FBI Special Agent Bell.

Per YR : "Upon further familiarizing myself with the members of the State Bar Board of Governors, I also filed a complaint with the Board of Governors against Public Member Jeannine English -- the wife of Howard Dickstein, an Indian gambling attorney. Weeks later, US Senator John McCain (Arizona) filed a complaint against Howard Dickstein for various acts of misconduct and asked that he be investigated.

(By TLR -- see story published on June 14, 2011 HERE)
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/starr.babcock@calbar.ca.gov,Robert.Hawley@calbar.ca.gov,joseph.dunn@calbar.ca.gov,jim.towery@calbar.ca.gov,
jamesaguirre@sbcglobal.net,jchairez@bakerlaw.com,IG@inspectorgeneral.ca.gov,Angela.davis.ca@gmail.com,
wgailey@gaileyassociates.com,micha@libertylaw.com,Jstreeter@kvn.com,mt@post.harvard.edu,
lowell.carruth@mccormickbarstow.com,Alec.chang@skadden.com,george@davisbroadband.com,
English@jeannineenglish.com,CGehlbac@placer.ca.gov,kgoodman@goodmanlaw.com,bjusticeh@aol.com,
patrick.kelly@wilsonelser.com,lk@kievelaw.com,wbl@cox.net,dennismangers@aol.com,gnelson@kreindler.com,
lrodriguez@pubdef.lacounty.gov,gwen@pacbell.net, lauranchick@yahoo.com/

6/12/2011

Dear President Hebert, Senator Dunn, Members of the Board of Governors, and to whom it may concern:

While examining circumstances concerning the California Consumer Protection Foundation ("CCPF"), which was secretly controlled by State Bar Executive Director Emeritus Judy Johnson (and which will be the subject of an upcoming request for investigation), I fortuitously stumbled upon troubling facts and events relating to Board of Governors ("BOG") member Jeannine English.

As such, and despite its anticipated futility, this correspondence is intended to advise the BOG of these events and officially request an investigation into irregularities, conflicts of interest, self-dealing, breach of fiduciary duties, and lack of disclosures by BOG member Jeannine English. Those irregularities relate to circumstances surrounding the following:

1. Keker & Van Nest's representation of Jeannine English's spouse, Mr. Howard Dickstein, in an action for, among others, fraud, advanced by the Rumsey Tribe and related lack of disclosure on the part of Ms. English and Jon Streeter concerning the existence of a past business relationship.

2. Misconduct by Howard Dickstein against the tribes, and related involvement by Jeannine English, who was also concurrently representing the tribe in her role as "Lobbyist." Subsequently, when the tribe advanced a suit against Dickstein claiming he had taken advantage of them by defrauding the tribe of millions of dollars over more than a decade, Dickstein referred to the suit as a "pack of lies," whereupon Keker & Van Nest was summoned to defend the action.

3. An unusually large cy pres award of $900,000 to the AARP in a class action suit in which Girardi & Keese (specifically, Thomas Girardi and Graham Lippsmith) represented the plaintiff. Jeannine English has strong ties to the AARP and, in fact serves as the president of its California branch.

4. Lack of disclosures on the part of Girardi & Keese's Howard Miller and Jeannine English of the existence of the transaction. Aggravating the lack of disclosures are circumstances surrounding misconduct by Girardi & Keese and Howard Miller in the Dole Litigation, the subsequent handing of the matter by the State Bar which assigned the matter to the firm of State Bar of California Foundation president Doug Winthrop, my own involvement, and the involvement Alec Chang.

THE RUMSEY MATTER

The Rumsey Band of Wintun Indians ("Rumsey") consists of 40 adult members who reside in Brooks, California, which is situated in Capay Valley -- 50 miles northwest of Sacramento and 90 miles northeast of the Bay Area. From a fledgling bingo business to what is now a thriving establishment known as "Cache Creek Casino," attorney Howard Dickstein, a pioneer in tribal gambling law and the spouse of Jeannine English, helped dig the tribe out of poverty.

In and about 2007, and in addition to the services offered by Mr. Dickstein, Ms. Jeannine English and her company -- Jeannine English & Associates -- were also conducting business with Rumsey, by which lobbying and consulting services were purveyed by Ms. English.

Toward the end of 2007, Rumsey -- represented by Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal and Cotchett, Pitre & McCarthy -- filed a suit in Yolo County Superior Court against Howard Dickstein and Jane Zerbi of Dickstein & Zerbi and Arlen Opper, a financial consultant, accusing them of unjustly enriching themselves with tribal money by defrauding the tribe of millions of dollars over more than a decade.

In statements to the media, Howard Dickstein referred to the allegations in the suit as a "pack of lies," while disparaging his client. Dickstein also stated that he plans to fight the suit and "fight hard." Appearing on behalf of defendant Dickstein was Elliot Peters of Keker & Van Nest.

The undersigned submits that because of the attorney-client relationship between Rumsey and Dickstein, it was questionable for Ms. English to enter into a business relationship with Rumsey and reckless for Jon Streeter and Jeannine English to conceal the past relationship from the public. If in fact a disclosure was made by any of them in a conspicuous place available for public viewing, please forward it to the undersigned in order for this portion of the complaint to be withdrawn.

These events lead one to wonder whether, hypothetically speaking, in the upcoming election for State Bar president Jeannine English would vote for Jon Streeter and not Michael Tenanbaum or Linda Davis as consideration for the representation Keker & Van Nest provided to her spouse. At least in part, it also explains to the undersigned the zeal and desire of Ms. English to be a member of the BOG. Clearly it was not to protect and serve the public; rather, it was to protect the interests of her husband (and, by extension, herself) who was accused of defrauding the Rumsey tribe of millions of dollars. In addition, it leads one to question whether the State Bar of California was not as vigorous as it should have been in protecting Rumsey from Dickstein.

THE AARP MATTER

In addition to serving on the State Bar's BOG, Jeannine English also serves as the President of the AARP's California branch, and is also involved with the AARP on a national level. Assuming no shenanigans, financial improprieties, or self-dealing with the AARP (which by the way, also operates a for-profit insurance brokerage), Ms. English deserves great credit for her outstanding contribution to the community. However, due to the overall set of circumstances surrounding English as described above, and as it is obvious that she serves on the BOG to serve the interests of her husband (and, by extension, herself), the undersigned is far from impressed.

Specifically, within the past few years, a plan has been devised by which a cy pres amount of $900,000 will be funneled to the AARP from a class action in which the law offices of Girardi & Keese serves as counsel. (Attridge v. Visa Case No. CGC-04-436920)

While the sums will not go directly to Ms. English, they will indirectly benefit her vis-a-vis the associated prestige resulting from successful fund raising efforts. The lack of disclosure regarding the proposed cy pres is alarming, especially considering events relating to the State Bar's handling of attorney misconduct in the Dole matter, my ethics complaint and request for an inquiry of 5 months ago as to James Towery, Jerome Falk, Douglas Winthrop, and Howard Miller as well as the overall circumstances surrounding the State Bar/BOG disinclination to deal with the matter. To date, only myself and, later, David Cameron Carr (a former State Bar prosecutor) have spoken about this grave injustice. Of those who had a moral, legal, and ethical obligation to disclose conflicts, and to otherwise speak, now you know why at least one more such person -- namely, Jeannine English -- has failed to do so.

Thank you for time.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

On June 17, 2011, shortly after I filed the complaint against Jeannine English, a special meeting of the Board of Governors of the State Bar of California took place to introduce amendments to proposed legislation. The proposed amendments , among others, called for a change to the conflict of interest policies. Specifically, public members should not be permitted to serve if they are involved in the legal profession or are the spouses of lawyers.

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(By TLR -- hear explosive audio message HERE )

After I asked the BOG to investigate Ms. English, a confidential source from Southern California informed me that Howard Dickstein and Thomas Girardi are business partners. Out of an abundance of caution, this information was forwarded on June 22, 2011 by me to the Deputy Executive Director of the State Bar of California, Robert Hawley, as follows:

Mr. Hawley:

This is to inform the State Bar about information I recently received
concerning Jeannine English, Howard Dickstein, and Thomas Girardi.

Based on what was communicated to me, Howard Dickstein and Thomas
Girardi are involved in some sort of a joint venture; or otherwise are
business partners in areas relating to Indian gambling.

Please note that I do not personally vouch for the credibility of the
source nor the accuracy of the information.

However, based on the totality of the circumstances, it is a lead
worth following.

Thanks,

-----------------------------------------------------------------------

Per YR,"on June 24, 2011, after learning more about the situation, I sent Jeannine English the following email, copying all of the individuals listed below :

/robert.Hawley@calbar.ca.gov,starr.babcock@calbar.ca.gov,joseph.dunn@calbar.ca.gov,tgirardi@girardikeese.com,
jim.towery@calbar.ca.gov,whebert@calvoclark.com,jamesaguirre@sbcglobal.net,jchairez@bakerlaw.com,
Angela.davis.ca@gmail.com,wgailey@gaileyassociates.com,micha@libertylaw.com,Jstreeter@kvn.com,
mt@post.harvard.edu,lowell.carruth@mccormickbarstow.com,Alec.chang@skadden.com,george@davisbroadband.com,
CGehlbac@placer.ca.gov,kgoodman@goodmanlaw.com,bjusticeh@aol.com,patrick.kelly@wilsonelser.com,
lk@kievelaw.com,wbl@cox.net,dennismangers@aol.com,gnelson@kreindler.com,lrodriguez@pubdef.lacounty.gov,
gwen@pacbell.net,lauranchick@yahoo.com,dwinthrop@howardrice.com,hfujie@buchalter.com,
english@jeannineenglish.com,/

Confidential

Dear Ms. English:

A few days ago, I received a tip advising me to look into past and present business relationships between your husband (Howard Dickstein) and Thomas Girardi of Girardi & Keese, and potentially Walter Lack of Engstrom Lispcomb and Lack -- part owner of the Bicycle Casino. The tip referenced areas relating to the gambling industry which include, but are not limited to, real estate, slot machines and other equipment/hardware, consultation, supplies, and the like.

Yesterday, out of an abundance of caution, I forwarded the tip to Robert Hawley only, as I believed it to be lacking credibility as well as probable cause.

Today, after I had an opportunity to conduct further research, I found prima facie evidence pointing to the possibility of such a relationship vis-a-vis Boyd Gaming Corporation's Thomas Girardi on one hand, and various Indian gambling outfits and your husband on the other.

Note that, in and of itself, it is not improper for Mr. Girardi and your husband to be involved in various business relationships of any nature.

Rather, my concern relates to the lack of disclosures, conflict of interests, and breach of trust by you and Howard Miller in general, and in particular due to events surrounding grave misconduct by Howard Miller, Thomas Girardi, and Walter Lack in the litigation against Dole. Also causing concern are subsequent events involving Howard Miller, the State Bar of California, the BOG, James Towery, Howard Rice, Jerome Falk, Douglas Winthrop, Skadden Arps, Skadden Arps's Alec Chang, and myself, as well as an undisclosed $900,000 cy pres award to the AARP courtesy of a class action in which Thomas Girardi represents the plaintiff.

Consequently, you are faced with the following options:

1. Ignore this communication and assume the risk that you may be subjected to legal proceedings in a Superior Court. In addition, you will be the subject of an upcoming writ of mandamus to the California Supreme Court involving multiple matters.

2. Provide me and the BOG a detailed list, however cumbersome, relating to the above matters, including ventures in all jurisdictions i,e. the various Indian nations located in the U.S., and explain your and your husband's positions relating to same.

3. Acknowledge that such a relationship existed and is still in existence, admit wrongdoing to the BOG, the People of the State of California and myself, apologize, and quietly exit the BOG by September 2011. In addition, you will agree:

A. To not participate in the upcoming election for State Bar President.

B. To never participate in any State Bar affair in which you hold a position of trust, and to never participate in lobbying for matters relating to the State Bar.

C. That you, your husband, and the law offices of Dickstein & Zerbi are to prepare and otherwise enter into a settlement agreement. Said settlement agreement will be executed upon the delivery of five cashiers checks, each in the amount of $50,000, made payable to YR (full name redacted). In addition, an additional two cashiers checks, each in the amount of $25,000, will be delivered to two Section 501(C)(3) entities of my choice.

Thank you for your time."

============================================================================

June 7, 2011 TELEPHONE CALL FROM FBI / ANGELA DAVIS -- Approximately one week after sending the above email to Ms. English, I received a telephone call from an FBI agent from Los Angeles. This agent stated that one of the individuals who had been ccd on the email had forwarded it to him for examination (although I have not confirmed this, I believe it may have been sent by Los Angeles Assistant US Attorney Angela Davis who was at the time a member of the BOG and a friend of Jeannine English as well as the attorney for Ms. English and her husband, Jon Streeter of Keker & Van Nest).

I explained to the FBI agent that in my mind the email to Ms. English constituted a demand letter. However, the agent stated that this was incorrect because, according to his understanding, a suit has to be filed first and only later can settlement negotiations begin. As such, I immediately and spontaneously informed the agent that I would withdraw the communication. He stated that this will be very much appreciated, and that he was certain the attorney who asked him to call me would also be appreciative , and that it will "go a long way" to resolving the matter. Accordingly, the following day I sent the agent and the members of the BOG an email withdrawing a large part of the communication.

On June 08, 2011, I wrote:

Dear Special Agent Bell:

Thank you for calling me yesterday afternoon. As you recall, at around 5:00 p.m. you called to discuss a communication I had sent Ms. Jeannine English and others on June 24, 2011.

You stated that one of the recipients of the email has a concern; and that an attorney from within the Los Angeles office of the U.S. Attorney had asked you to investigate this matter.

As I stated to you, my intent was to send a simple "Demand Letter" based on my good faith belief (and based on multiple factors) that others and I are entitled to board members who are free from any conflicts of interests, lack of disclosures, self dealing, breaches of fiduciary duties, and the like.

Nevertheless, I do appreciate how standing alone, and without being familiar with prior communications and surrounding circumstances, such a communication may cause one to raise an eyebrow.

As such, and based on the totality of the circumstances, the part which is underlined below is hereby being withdrawn.

Related story: YR's involvement in the accompanying matter of In Re Girardi, please see HERE

* The Leslie Brodie Report urges readers to exercise extreme caution and not jump to conclusions regarding misconduct by anyone.

In the midst of a growing controversy over Lea and David Rosenberg, the former foreperson of Yolo County's Grand Jury has been identified as a potential wrongdoer in a civil inquiry into the peculiar circumstances surrounding familiar faces and a familiar casino in the context of a relatively unknown Davis-based non-profit entity, Progress Ranch.

Barbara Sommer (image: courtesy)

Barbara Sommer (who currently serves as the president of Progress Ranch; President of California Grand Jurors’ Association - Yolo County Chapter) is being looked into for indications of whether she may have been the recipient of questionable gifts during a time period when she served concurrently as Treasurer of Progress Ranch and Foreperson of Yolo County's Grand Jury in order to influence the outcome of various legal proceedings, and especially a Grand Jury investigation of Cache Creek Casino located in Yolo County.

The rapidly expanding multi-prong civil inquiry, conducted by TLR's confederate -- Yolo County's YR --also views Yocha Dehe Wintun Nation, Chairman Marshall McKay, and attorney Howard Dickstein as parties who may potentially have a played a role in the scheme, although this investigation is continuing.

A source familiar with the situation, speaking on condition of anonymity, maintains that evidence shows that for a period of several years, four or five non-profits commandeered by Lea and David Rosenberg (Soroptimist International of Davis , Davis Rebekah Lodge, Davis Odd Fellows, Davis Odd Fellows Charities, Inc., and possibly Davis Sunrise Rotary Club) devoted unusual and, indeed, at times exclusive attention to financially benefit "foster youth" and/or "emancipated foster youth" in Yolo County.

For example, Lea and David Rosenberg (at times, with the assistance of Judge David Reed and CPA Victor Bucher) raised funds to support foster youth by mobilizing Davis Odd Fellows ("Breakfast with Santa"), Soroptimist International of Davis ("Texas Hold 'Em" ), Davis Rebekah Lodge ("Crab Feed"), and Davis Odd Fellows Charities, Inc. ("Orphan Scholarship Fund").

Also being looked into are Gretchen Peralta and Allison and Robert Woolley. Both Peralta and Robert Wooley are directors of Progress Ranch. Allison Wooley sold tickets to "Texas Hold' Em".

Progress Ranch is a non-profit public benefit, Section 510(c)(3) agency providing residential treatment services for troubled children. It is licensed by the State of California Department of Social Services. Fees for the children are received from the Department of Social Services of the county where the child's family resides.

BELOW MODIFIED VERSION OF COMMUNICATION FROM YR TO THIRD PARTY. AUDIO MODIFIED TO PROTECT IDENTITY OF SOURCE

PART I:

1. ETHICS COMPLAINT / IN RE GIRARDI -- In 2010, the United States Federal Court of Appeal for the Ninth Circuit issued its final ruling in the disciplinary matter of In Re Girardi by imposing close to $500,000 in sanctions on Walter Lack of Engstrom Lispcomb & Lack and Thomas Girardi of Girardi & Keese stemming from an attempt to defraud the court and cause injury to Dole Food Company in the underlying litigation. You may have heard of Walter Lack and Thomas Girardi as they are the lawyers who were featured in the movie "Erin Brokovich" involving utility company PG&E.

The court ruled that Walter Lack (who stipulated to Special Prosecutor Rory Little that his prolonged acts of misconduct were intentional) and Thomas Girardi intentionally and recklessly resorted to the use of known falsehoods for years. The Ninth Circuit ordered Girardi and Lack to report their misconduct to the State Bar of California.

The State Bar of California disqualified itself from handling the matter since Howard Miller (of Girardi & Keese) served at that time as its president, and had also made the decision to hire then-chief prosecutor, James Towery.

Mr. Towery, in turn, appointed Jerome Falk of Howard Rice (now Arnold & Porter) as outside "special prosecutor" to determine whether or not to bring charges against Girardi and Lack. (Mr. Falk is a colleague of Douglas Winthrop, and both represented PG&E in its massive bankruptcy proceedings.)

Mr. Falk, in turn, exercised prosecutorial discretion and concluded that he did not believe Lack acted intentionally and that no charges will be brought against the two attorneys.

Within days of Mr. Falk's decision, I filed an ethics complaint with the State Bar of California against Jerome Falk, James Towery, Howard Miller, and Douglas Winthrop (managing partner of Howard Rice and then-elected president of the Foundation), alleging that it was improper for Mr. Towery to appoint Mr. Falk given the close personal relationship between Howard Miller and Douglas Winthrop. Specifically, Howard Miller -- in his capacity as president of the State Bar -- had appointed Douglas Winthrop as president of the California Bar Foundation, a foundation maintained and controlled by the State Bar. (Much later I also discovered that Jerome Falk is actually the personal attorney of Thomas Girardi, and that Howard Rice and Jerome Falk represented Walter Lack, Thomas Girardi, Engstrom Lispcomb & Lack, and Girardi & Keese in approximately 2007, and for a period of 2 years, in a malpractice action.)

2. FOGEL V. FARMERS -- In the matter of In Re Girardi, Mr. Girardi and his law firm were represented by the firm of Skadden Arps. In reviewing the file of In Re Girardi, I discovered that, beginning in 2003, Girardi & Keese and Engstrom Lispcomb & Lack were prosecuting a class action case against Farmers Insurance Company, which was represented by Skadden Arps. This was a nationwide class action with estimated damages of close to $15 billion that had originally been filed by Texas Governor Rick Perry.

I thereafter informed the Los Angeles County Superior Court (Judge William Highberger) of this information, and filed a State Bar ethics complaint against attorneys Thomas Girardi of Girardi & Keese and Thomas Nolan and Raoul Kennedy of Skadden Arps because neither the class of plaintiffs (consisting of 14 million Americans), nor the courts (the Ninth Circuit in the matter of In Re Girardi and the Los Angeles County Superior Court in the matter of Fogel vs. Farmers) had been informed of the concurrent representation by which Skadden Arps represented Girardi & Keese (in the Ninth Circuit matter), while at the same time defending Farmers.

Shortly after I filed this ethics complaint, Skadden Arps and Dewey Lebeuf (representing Farmers' parent company, Zurich Financial) moved ex parte (which was unopposed) to amend the settlement agreement in the Fogel matter and the notice to the class of 14 million Americans throughout the country to include a proviso by which members of the class would be prohibited from suing anyone due to the concurrent representation described above. Nevertheless, the State Bar of California decided not to take any action on this ethics complaint.

3. CaliforniaALL -- When researching the relationship of Girardi & Keese and Howard Rice and the appointment of Douglas Winthrop as president of the California Bar Foundation by Howard Miller of Girardi & Keese, I reviewed the California Bar Foundation's annual reports to familiarize myself with the names of the Foundation's board of directors. I stumbled upon the fact that the Foundation ended 2008 close to $500,000 in the negative. Specifically, the Foundation reported to the IRS that REVENUE LESS EXPENSES in 2007 equaled plus +$373.842.00. However, in 2008, the Foundation reported to the IRS that REVENUE LESS EXPENSES equaled minus -$537,712.

I discovered that the money had been transferred to a newly-created Section 501(c)(3) non-profit entity (headed by Ruthe Catolico Ashley -- a friend of Chief Justice Tani Cantil-Sakayue) known as CaliforniaALL, which obtained hundreds of thousands of dollars from utility companies PG&E, SCE, AT&T, and Verizon. In turn, CaliforniaALL funneled a large portion of the money to the UCI Foundation, where a friend and former partner of Mark Robinson (of the Judicial Council), State Bar of California Executive Director Joe Dunn, served as trustee in 2008-9 to launch a new entity known as Saturday Law Academy.

Various factors and evidence caused me to suspect that a significant portion of the funds transferred from the California Bar Foundation ended up financing a newly-created online publication which Joe Dunn had launched with the help of Thomas Girardi and James Brosnahan of Morrison & Foerster; this online publication is known as "Voice of OC."

Those factors include, but are not limited to, the fact that some individuals and entities involved in the creation of CaliforniaALL and the subsequent transfer of $780,000 from the Cal Bar Foundation to CaliforniaALL were also involved in assisting Joe Dunn with the creation of "Voice of OC" to wit – Morrison & Foerster's Susan Mac Cormac as legal counsel for CaliforniaALL; Girardi & Keese's Howard Miller in his capacity as BOD member of Cal Bar Foundation; and BOG members who voted to endorse CaliforniaALL and consider it to have been a partner of the State Bar of California. Also relevant was that Morrison & Foerster's James Brosnahan and Girardi & Keese's Thomas Girardi also assisted Joe Dunn in establishing Voice of OC, the fact that Saturday Law Academy was established many years earlier, and the fact that Ruthe Ashley exited CaliforniaALL in the same month and year Joe Dunn established Voice of OC (September 2009).

Based on my concerns, I requested that Voice of OC provide me with copies of its IRS 990 forms. Voice of OC did not comply with applicable IRS regulations in that it failed to reply to my request for copies of its 990 forms submitted to the IRS, whereupon I filed a complaint against Voice of OC and Joe Dunn with the IRS.

Later, after thorough research, I discovered that events surrounding CaliforniaALL, OBAMA FOR AMERICA, and those responsible for the financing of OBAMA FOR AMERICA are highly related, to wit, Ambassador Jeffrey Bleich, Ron Olson, Brad Phillips (of Munger Tolles & Olson) Ambassador John Roos and Mark Parnes (of Wilson Sonsini) James Brosnahan, DOJ's Tony West, Chris Young, Annette Carnegie (of Morrison & Foerster) Steven Churchwell (of DLA Piper in Sacramento -- where CaliforniaALL resided free of charge) Kamala Harris, as well as Freada Kapor - a California Democratic Party operative who served as a director of CaliforniaALL, and that The Kapor Center generally used to fund-raise on behalf of the many foundations located there, were additionally used to contact potential voters and encourage them to vote for then candidate Barack Obama. Her husband, Mitchell Kapor, was part of a tech team working for the campaigns of Barack Obama and Kamala Harris of CaliforniaALL.

I invite you to visit the below link for more details:

http://la.indymedia.org/news/2012/09/255420.php

4. UC DAVIS QUADRAPLEGIC LAW STUDENT SARA GRANDA / JUDGE MORRISON ENGALND /RACHEL GRUNBERG / LARRY YEE -- Also in connection with CaliforniaALL, I advanced a judicial misconduct complaint against Judge Morrison England since State Bar of California Executive Director Judy Johnson, Judge England, his wife (Torie Flournoy-England), and State Bar of California employee Patricia Lee were all members of CaliforniaALL's board of directors and/or advisory council. The basis for that complaint was these individuals' failure to inform plaintiff Sara Granda -- who had filed an action in federal court naming the State Bar of California as a sole defendant that was heard by Judge Morrison England -- of these facts.

Specifically, without informing plaintiff Granda of his relationship with Judy Johnson (the State Bar's Executive Director) vis-a-vis CaliforniaALL and either obtaining a waiver from this plaintiff or independently recusing himself, Judge England summarily dismissed Ms. Granda's complaint against the California State Bar. Fortunately for Ms. Granda, several days later then-Governor Arnold Schwarzenegger championed her cause and pressured the California Bar to accommodate her needs.

I invite you to visit the below link to CaliforniaALL's own publication which shows the relationship I described.

http://www.scribd.com/doc/48722718/9-CaliforniaALL-Newsletter-announcing-change-of-address-and-DLA-Piper-Pro-Bono

http://www.scribd.com/doc/100876445/CalALL-Mar2009Newsletter

In connection with the failure to disclose the relationship to plaintiff Sarah Granda, I also filed an ethics complaint with the State Bar of California against its own employees/attorneys which represented the State Bar in the litigation -- Rachel Grunberg, Mark Torres Gil, and Larry Yee.

5. JUSTICE MING CHIN / DEPARTURE FROM CAUSE -- While researching CaliforniaALL, I stumbled upon a separate non-profit entity in Southern California which was also absorbing money from utility companies known as CAUSE.

Since Justice Ming Chin was part of the entity's board/council, I filed a complaint with the Office of Judicial Performance, and very shortly thereafter I was informed by CAUSE's legal counsel that Justice Chin quit the entity.

6. JEANNINE ENGLISH / HOWARD DICKSTEIN -- Upon further familiarizing myself with the members of the State Bar Board of Governors, I also filed a complaint with the Board of Governors against Public Member Jeannine English -- the wife of Howard Dickstein, an Indian gambling attorney. Weeks later, US Senator John McCain (Arizona) filed a complaint against Howard Dickstein for various acts of misconduct and asked that he be investigated.

--------------------------------------------------------------------------

6/12/2011

Dear President Hebert, Senator Dunn, Members of the Board of Governors, and to whom it may concern:

While examining circumstances concerning the California Consumer Protection Foundation ("CCPF"), which was secretly controlled by State Bar Executive Director Emeritus Judy Johnson (and which will be the subject of an upcoming request for investigation), I fortuitously stumbled upon troubling facts and events relating to Board of Governors ("BOG") member Jeannine English.

As such, and despite its anticipated futility, this correspondence is intended to advise the BOG of these events and officially request an investigation into irregularities, conflicts of interest, self-dealing, breach of fiduciary duties, and lack of disclosures by BOG member Jeannine English. Those irregularities relate to circumstances surrounding the following:

1. Keker & Van Nest's representation of Jeannine English's spouse, Mr. Howard Dickstein, in an action for, among others, fraud, advanced by the Rumsey Tribe and related lack of disclosure on the part of Ms. English and Jon Streeter concerning the existence of a past business relationship.

2. Misconduct by Howard Dickstein against the tribes, and related involvement by Jeannine English, who was also concurrently representing the tribe in her role as "Lobbyist." Subsequently, when the tribe advanced a suit against Dickstein claiming he had taken advantage of them by defrauding the tribe of millions of dollars over more than a decade, Dickstein referred to the suit as a "pack of lies," whereupon Keker & Van Nest was summoned to defend the action.

3. An unusually large cy pres award of $900,000 to the AARP in a class action suit in which Girardi & Keese (specifically, Thomas Girardi and Graham Lippsmith) represented the plaintiff. Jeannine English has strong ties to the AARP and, in fact serves as the president of its California branch.

4. Lack of disclosures on the part of Girardi & Keese's Howard Miller and Jeannine English of the existence of the transaction. Aggravating the lack of disclosures are circumstances surrounding misconduct by Girardi & Keese and Howard Miller in the Dole Litigation, the subsequent handing of the matter by the State Bar which assigned the matter to the firm of State Bar of California Foundation president Doug Winthrop, my own involvement, and the involvement Alec Chang.

THE RUMSEY MATTER

The Rumsey Band of Wintun Indians ("Rumsey") consists of 40 adult members who reside in Brooks, California, which is situated in Capay Valley -- 50 miles northwest of Sacramento and 90 miles northeast of the Bay Area. From a fledgling bingo business to what is now a thriving establishment known as "Cache Creek Casino," attorney Howard Dickstein, a pioneer in tribal gambling law and the spouse of Jeannine English, helped dig the tribe out of poverty.

In and about 2007, and in addition to the services offered by Mr. Dickstein, Ms. Jeannine English and her company -- Jeannine English & Associates -- were also conducting business with Rumsey, by which lobbying and consulting services were purveyed by Ms. English.

Toward the end of 2007, Rumsey -- represented by Sonnenschein Nath & Rosenthal and Cotchett, Pitre & McCarthy -- filed a suit in Yolo County Superior Court against Howard Dickstein and Jane Zerbi of Dickstein & Zerbi and Arlen Opper, a financial consultant, accusing them of unjustly enriching themselves with tribal money by defrauding the tribe of millions of dollars over more than a decade.

In statements to the media, Howard Dickstein referred to the allegations in the suit as a "pack of lies," while disparaging his client. Dickstein also stated that he plans to fight the suit and "fight hard." Appearing on behalf of defendant Dickstein was Elliot Peters of Keker & Van Nest.

The undersigned submits that because of the attorney-client relationship between Rumsey and Dickstein, it was questionable for Ms. English to enter into a business relationship with Rumsey and reckless for Jon Streeter and Jeannine English to conceal the past relationship from the public. If in fact a disclosure was made by any of them in a conspicuous place available for public viewing, please forward it to the undersigned in order for this portion of the complaint to be withdrawn.

These events lead one to wonder whether, hypothetically speaking, in the upcoming election for State Bar president Jeannine English would vote for Jon Streeter and not Michael Tenanbaum or Linda Davis as consideration for the representation Keker & Van Nest provided to her spouse. At least in part, it also explains to the undersigned the zeal and desire of Ms. English to be a member of the BOG. Clearly it was not to protect and serve the public; rather, it was to protect the interests of her husband (and, by extension, herself) who was accused of defrauding the Rumsey tribe of millions of dollars. In addition, it leads one to question whether the State Bar of California was not as vigorous as it should have been in protecting Rumsey from Dickstein.

THE AARP MATTER

In addition to serving on the State Bar's BOG, Jeannine English also serves as the President of the AARP's California branch, and is also involved with the AARP on a national level. Assuming no shenanigans, financial improprieties, or self-dealing with the AARP (which by the way, also operates a for-profit insurance brokerage), Ms. English deserves great credit for her outstanding contribution to the community. However, due to the overall set of circumstances surrounding English as described above, and as it is obvious that she serves on the BOG to serve the interests of her husband (and, by extension, herself), the undersigned is far from impressed.

Specifically, within the past few years, a plan has been devised by which a cy pres amount of $900,000 will be funneled to the AARP from a class action in which the law offices of Girardi & Keese serves as counsel. (Attridge v. Visa Case No. CGC-04-436920)

While the sums will not go directly to Ms. English, they will indirectly benefit her vis-a-vis the associated prestige resulting from successful fund raising efforts. The lack of disclosure regarding the proposed cy pres is alarming, especially considering events relating to the State Bar's handling of attorney misconduct in the Dole matter, my ethics complaint and request for an inquiry of 5 months ago as to James Towery, Jerome Falk, Douglas Winthrop, and Howard Miller as well as the overall circumstances surrounding the State Bar/BOG disinclination to deal with the matter. To date, only myself and, later, David Cameron Carr (a former State Bar prosecutor) have spoken about this grave injustice. Of those who had a moral, legal, and ethical obligation to disclose conflicts, and to otherwise speak, now you know why at least one more such person -- namely, Jeannine English -- has failed to do so.

Thank you for time.

------------------------------------------------------------------------

7. On June 17, 2011, shortly after I filed the complaint against Jeannine English, a special meeting of the Board of Governors of the State Bar of California took place to introduce amendments to proposed legislation. The proposed amendments , among others, called for a change to the conflict of interest policies. Specifically, public members should not be permitted to serve if they are involved in the legal profession or are the spouses of lawyers.

8. After I asked the BOG to investigate Ms. English, a confidential source from Southern California informed me that Howard Dickstein and Thomas Girardi are business partners. Out of an abundance of caution, this information was forwarded on June 22, 2011 by me to the Deputy Executive Director of the State Bar of California, Robert Hawley, as follows:

Mr. Hawley:

This is to inform the State Bar about information I recently received
concerning Jeannine English, Howard Dickstein, and Thomas Girardi.

Based on what was communicated to me, Howard Dickstein and Thomas
Girardi are involved in some sort of a joint venture; or otherwise are
business partners in areas relating to Indian gambling.

Please note that I do not personally vouch for the credibility of the
source nor the accuracy of the information.

However, based on the totality of the circumstances, it is a lead
worth following.

Thanks

Mark Friedman of Fulcrum Property and State Bar of California Board of Governors member Jeannine English (Howard Dickstein's business partner/co-defendant and wife, respectively) as well as State Bar of California Board of Governors member Laura Chick were added to the list of potential wrongdoers in a the scheme known as CaliforniaALL.

According to a Yolo County-based Rabbi: "in the midst of the growing controversy over the alleged embezzlement of public funds by California Democratic Party operatives associated with OBAMA FOR AMERICA, a Sacramento real estate developer once accused of defrauding an Indian tribe out of millions of dollars while conspiring with the tribe's attorney (Howard Dickstein), is now embroiled in a separate controversy dealing with the alleged embezzlement of public funds through and by means of fraud while conspiring with the wife of Howard Dickstein -- Sacramento-based lobbyist Jeannine English.

Specifically, Mark Friedman of Sacramento-based Fulcrum Property Group -- an Electoral for Barack Obama -- has recently been identified as a potential player in the financial scheme known as CaliforniaALL following the fortuitous discovery of evidence relating to his accountant, Alison Turner of Alison Turner & Associates.

As relevant to this matter, in 2007, various members of the State Bar of California Board of Governors with ties to the Democratic Party/OBAMA FOR AMERICA are accused of knowingly agreeing to establish a non-profit entity (known as CaliforniaALL) which was later misused as a vehicle to absorb funds from utility companies, as well as close to $800,000 from the California Bar Foundation (an entity controlled by the State Bar of California Board of Governors).

As matters presently stand, suspicions exist that Morrison & Foerster attorneys James Brosnahan (the self-proclaimed "mastermind" behind the Democratic Party and member of OBAMA FOR AMERICA's California Finance Committee), Tony West (OBAMA FOR AMERICA’s Chair of California's Finance Committee), Chris Young (OBAMA FOR AMERICA's Northern California Deputy Finance Director), Annette Carnegie (former director of the California Bar Foundation), Kamala Harris (Co-Chair, OBAMA FOR AMERICA and member of CaliforniaALL), Jeffrey Bleich of Munger Tolles (president of the State Bar of California, director of the California Bar Foundation, and founding member and Chair of OBAMA FOR AMERICA’s National Finance Committee), Brad Phillips of Munger Tolles (2007- 2008 Director of the California Bar Foundation which served as a "financial sponsor" to CaliforniaALL on behalf of Verizon Wireless and Southern California Edison, both clients of Munger Tolles & Olson), Mark Parnes of Wilson Sonsini (2007-2008 director and Secretary of the California Bar Foundation), John Roos of Wilson Sonsini (former CEO of Wilson Sonsini and member of OBAMA FOR AMERICA’s National Finance Committee), Steven Churchwell of DLA Piper in Sacramento (Treasurer, draft committee of OBAMA FOR AMERICA; firm where CaliforniaALL resided free of charge), Laura Chick (member of the State Bar of California Board of Governors and OBAMA FOR AMERICA), and Freada Klein Kapor (member of the board of directors of CaliforniaALL; OBAMA FOR AMERICA's phone bank was located at The Kapor Center) all participated in a sophisticated financial scheme to misuse all or part of the "hush-hush" $780,000 originating from the California Bar Foundation to improperly benefit OBAMA FOR AMERICA via a separate foundation created ad hoc by Susan Mac Cormac and Eric Tate of Morrison & Foerster known as CaliforniaALL.

In 2007, Ruthe Catolico Ashley served as member of the State Bar of California Board of Governors alongside Jeffrey Bleich, and came up with the idea to create CaliforniaALL during a meeting with Sarah Redfield and Peter Arth, (the assistant to CPUC President Michael Peevey).

CaliforniaALL was conveniently housed free of charge at the offices of DLA Piper in Sacramento, alongside the draft committee of OBAMA FOR AMERICA, where Steve Churchwell of DLA Piper in Sacramento served as Treasurer of the draft committee of OBAMA FOR AMERICA.

Subsequent to the election of Barack Obama, CaliforniaALL was dissolved.

Other then collecting close to $2 million directly from utility companies (including the "hush-hush" transfer of $774,247, comprised of one installment of $5000 and another contribution of $769,247 from the Foundation which was never mentioned in the Foundation's "newsroom" or by any other of its publications such as the California Bar Journal or by any of the newsletters and alerts published by CaliforniaALL), CaliforniaALL appears to have been be a sham, phantom entity from its inception in 2008 to the day it began to slowly be dissolved in approximately 2009, subsequent to the election of Barack Obama as president of the U.S.

Its only alleged achievement was providing some money for the creation of the Saturday Academy of Law at UC Irvine ("SALUCI") in approximately 2008-2009. Here too vast and intense suspicious circumstances exist as the funds from CaliforniaALL actually went to the UC Irvine Foundation, where the present executive director of the State Bar of California (Senator Joe Dunn) serves as a member of the audit committee, and it turns out that the SALUCI was actually already created in 2005 and was fully operational before CaliforniaALL arrived on the scene. In addition, some records seem to indicate that Verizon Wireless funneled the money directly to SALUCI , while CaliforniaALL took the credit."

Source @:

http://davis.patch.com/announcements/sacramento-developer-with-ties-to-uc-davis-mind-institute-embroiled-in-new-controversy

 

Laura Chick of OBAMA FOR AMERICA / State Bar of California BOG /  American Recovery and Reinvestment Act

 

 

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA IRVINE FOUNDATION: Richard Blum -- Regent of the University of California and husband of United States Senator from California Dianne Feinstein, Joseph Dunn, Erwin Chemerinsky, Mark Robinson

VOICE OF OC: Richard Blum -- Regent of the University of California and husband of United States Senator from California Dianne Feinstein, Kinde Durkee, Joseph Dunn, Erwin Chemerinsky, Thomas Giradi, James Brosnahan.  See relevant stories HERE and HERE

J STREET PAC: Richard Blum -- Regent of the University of California and husband of United States Senator from California Dianne Feinstein; Controversial Indian gambling attorney RICO defendant Howard Dickstein -- member of both Anti-Israel's J Street PAC and J Street Gang of Greed, alongside Jerry Brown ; Dickstein's wife, State Bar of California Board of Governors Public Member RICO defendant Jeannine English - Dickstein of AARP.

STATION CASINOS: Richard Blum -- Regent of the University of California and husband of United States Senator from California Dianne Feinstein; Controversial Indian gambling attorney RICO defendant Howard Dickstein -- member of both anti-Israel J Street PAC and J Street Gang of Greed, alongside Jerry Brown ; Dickstein's wife, State Bar of California Board of Governors Public Member RICO Defendant Jeannine English - Dickstein of AARP.

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA's SCRIPPS INSTITUTION OF OCEANOGRAPHY: Richard Blum -- Regent of the University of California and husband of United States Senator from California Dianne Feinstein, operative Donna Lucas, Marty Africa (alleged paramour of James Brosnahan - self proclaimed "mastermind behind the Democratic Party" / mastermind-legal counsel to CaliforniaALL / Voice of OC Director ) and University of California Scripps Institution of Oceanography's deposed marine researcher turned financier -- Tony Haymet of CleanTECH / Pegasus Capital / Phillips & Associates

UNIVERSITY OF PHOENIX: Richard Blum -- Regent of the University of California and husband of United States Senator from California Dianne Feinstein and California Democratic Party Chairman, Former Cocaine Addict, "Sordid Sexual-Harasser" -- John Burton

UC BERKELEY FOUNDATION/CaliforniaALL: Richard Blum -- Regent of the University of California and husband of United States Senator from California Dianne Feinstein, Freada Klein Kapor of OBAMA FOR AMERICA/THE KAPOR CENTER, and Gibor Basri (both Kapor and Basri directors of CaliforniaALL -- Basri,surreptitiously so)

The Mary Robinson Foundation: Richard Blum -- Regent of the University of California and husband of United States Senator from California Dianne Feinstein and husband of Freada Klein Kapor -- OBAMA FOR AMERICA's tech-guru Mitch Kapor

UC / HAAS/ GOLDMAN / ZELLERBACH CONNECTION : Richard Blum -- Regent of the University of California and husband of United States Senator from California Dianne Feinstein and CaliforniaALL Director Carry Zellerbach

CityView / CB Richard Ellis: Richard Blum -- Regent of the University of California and husband of United States Senator from California Dianne Feinstein; CityView's Victor Miramontes, Chairman of CaliforniaALL; CityView's Henry Cisneros

CalPERS & CalSTRS Richard Blum -- Regent of the University of California and husband of United States Senator from California Dianne Feinstein; CaliforniaALL's Ruthe Catolico Ashley of CalPERS & CalSTRS

University of California, San Francisco (UCSF) / Zen Hospice Project :Richard Blum -- Regent of the University of California and husband of United States Senator from California Dianne Feinstein; MapLight's Andrew Page of Zen Hospice Project -- a partner of UCSF, and Jennifer DeMarre Jermaine of both CaliforniaALL / Zen Hospice Project

CB Richard Ellis / Allen Matkins / UC Irvine: Richard Blum -- Regent of the University of California and husband of United States Senator from California Dianne Feinstein; Allen Matkins's Robert Hamilton and Spouse -- Karina Hamilton of UC Irvine / Saturday Law Academy.  EXIF Data obtained  from Allen Matkins' photo is a source of grave concern.

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA DAVIS FOUNDATION: Richard Blum -- Regent of the University of California and husband of United States Senator from California Dianne Feinstein, Yocha Dehe / Cache Creek Casino's Chairman Marshall McKay, DLA Piper's Gilles Attia, Fulcrum Property's Mark Friedman -- confederate of Howard Dickstein

 

 

UC Davis MIND Institute -- Mark Friedman of Fulcrum Property (confederate of both CaliforniaALL's accountant Alison Turner of Alison Turner & Associated and  Howard Dickstein - husband of Jeannine English) and Marjorie Solomon ( Mark Friedman's spouse)

THE CALIFORNIA SUPREME COURT HISTORICAL SOCIETY -- Richard Blum / PG&E's Ophelia Basgal of Sham CaliforniaALL / Ronald George / Kay Werdegar -- Unusual movements of money from the California Supreme Court Historical Society to the University of California Board of Regents

UC BERKELEY INSTITUTE OF GOVERNMENTAL STUDIES: Richard Blum -- Regent of the University of California and husband of United States Senator from California Dianne Feinstein, Eric George

UC REGENT RONALD STOVITZ: Richard Blum -- Regent of the University of California and husband of United States Senator from California Dianne Feinstein and UC Regent Ronald Stovitz -- former judge with court of State Bar of California.

Related stories, please see HERE and HERE and HERE

DEVELOPING.....Details Soon.....

(L-R) Richard Lehman and Jeannine English of Sacramento-based lobbying firm Lehman English Kelly & O'Keefe which represented Duke Energy and Reliant Energy (Image: courtesy photos)

Mr. Geoffrey Brown, professor of law at JFK School of Law. Between 2001 to 2007 served as Commissioner with the CPUC. From 2006 to 2009 Brown serve as director with the State Bar of California Foundation (DBA "California Bar Foundation"). In 2008, California Bar Foundation quietly transferred $769,247.00 to sham entity CaliforniaALL -- which also obtained additional 1.5 Million from utility companies.  In reaction to complainant's request for an inquiry to the State Bar of California Board of Governors, Brown immediately, as though bitten by a snake, threatened to file legal action even though the communication with the BOG was absolutely privileged and justified, and only made mention of Brown in passing.(image:courtesy photo)

Mr. Peter Arth Jr., former Chief of Staff to CPUC's President Michael Peevey. Not a stranger to The Leslie Brodie Report, Arth has been featured in many of our stories concering sham non-profit "CaliforniaALL."  In April 2007, with a steadfast commitment, Ruthe Ashley, Sarah  Redfield, and Peter Arth arrived for a "brainstorming session" without any notepads; they quickly improvised and resorted to recording notes on a paper napkin. According to Ashley, these notes were the cornerstones of CaliforniaALL. See an excerpt from CaliforniaALL's website below:

 

CAL ENERGY CRISIS MEETING AT THE OTHER BAR -STATE BAR OF CALIFORNIA

State Bar of California Board of Governors ("BOG")  "Public Member" Jeannine English; State Bar of California Foundation Director, CPUC Commissioner Geoffrey Brown; CPUC General Counsel Peter Arth of State Bar of California Council on Access and Fairness.  The much sought after Arth was the subject a special emergency resolution by the BOG which stated: "Due to the need to make appointments before the Board Committee on Volunteer Involvementwould next meet, the Board Committee on Operations, which has the authority to act on behalfof the Board of Governors in between regular meetings, held a meeting by conference call onAugust 28, 2007 to discuss the above appointment.A quorum was reached and the Board Committee voted unanimously to adopt the following resolution: RESOLVED that the Board Committee on Operations, acting on behalf of the Board ofGovernors in between meetings, appoints Peter J. Arth to the Council on Access and Fairness, effective immediately, with a term to expire on September 13, 2009."

(L-R) Joe Dunn, Thomas Girardi, James Brosnahan, Martha Escutia, Pierce O'Donnell, Lance Astrella, Jerome Falk, Geoffrey Brown, Joe Cotchett, Walter Lack, and John Keker

 

 

 

HOWARD DICKSTEIN

TOM GIRARDI

In an almost unprecedented turn of events and somewhat ironically, the man who once stated "our justice systems, our courts, are the best things about this country because in other countries, they settle their problems through violence" is now accused of conspiring with others to operate the justice system as a criminal racketeering enterprise.

Court documents filed with the United States District Court for the District of Columbia reveal that controversial trial attorney Tom Girardi of Los Angeles-based Girardi & Keese is accused of violating the Racketeering Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act.

Among the claimed misconduct, the civil suit alleges that in exchange for favorable treatment in court cases, Girardi resorted to the use of payoffs, underwriting social events, and the laundering of money to effect the outcome of court cases "with certain judges and attorneys."

Tom Girardi of Girardi & Keese. Per the Ninth Circuit, Walter Lack and Thomas Girardi have resorted to employing "the persistent use of known falsehoods" and "false representations" were made "knowingly, intentionally, and recklessly" during years of litigation. Subsequent to those findings, the State Bar of California appointed Howard Rice's Jerome Falk to serve as special prosecutor against Girardi, Lack, and their respective firms. None mentioned that Girardi and Lack are actually clients of Jerome Falk and Howard Rice. See story here. For additional allegations of misconduct leveled against Girardi, please see here, and here , and here, and here, and here, and here, and here, and here, and here, and here. For the latest on Walter Lack, please see here. (Image: courtesy photo)

RICO is a federal law that authorizes a civil cause of action for acts performed as part of an ongoing criminal organization. RICO focuses specifically on racketeering, and it allows for the leaders of a syndicate to be held civilly liable for the crimes that they ordered others to commit or which they assisted in committing.

Girardi (far left) enjoys an authentic dinner, friendship and comradery during an Italian-American Lawyers Association event. The gentleman at the center of the photo is State Bar of California employe Tom Layton who according to sources is part of an ongoing "ambulance chasing" scheme the Girardi Syndicate operates in San Bernardino County vis-a-vis a satellite office located in San Bernardino and managed by Thomas Girardi's son-in-law, David Lira. (Image:courtesy)

The suit also asserts that other individuals engaged in racketeering activities, including Tom Layton -- a former Los Angeles Deputy Sheriff/Senior State Bar of California investigator, and Alec Chang of Skadden Arps.

Girardi is married to Erika Jayne, an American dance/club music performer who is also known as Erika Girardi. He has been feartured regularly on The Leslie Brodie Report. For example, we previously reported about an ethics complaint alleging multiple acts of misconduct filed with the State Bar of California against attorneys from the firms of Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom LLP and Girardi & Keese.

The complaint alleged that ethical breaches took place as a result of Skadden Arps' representation of Girardi & Keese in the matter of In Re Girardi because, at the same time, Girardi & Keese and Skadden Arps were on opposing sides in the case of Fogel v. Farmers Group, Inc.

Per the complaint, in August 2003, Walter Lack (of Engstrom, Lipscomb & Lack) and Thomas Girardi and Graham LippSmith (of Girardi & Keese) filed a class action suit on behalf of plaintiffs Benjamin Fogel against Farmers Group, Inc. in Los Angeles County Superior Court. The suit was defended by attorneys from Skadden Arps.

Despite their respective roles as plaintiffs' counsel and defendants' counsel in Fogel v. Farmers, Girardi & Keese and Skadden Arps entered into an agreement by which Skadden Arps would represent Girardi & Keese and Thomas Girardi before the Ninth Circuit in the matter of In re Girardi following the Ninth Circuit's issuance of an order to show cause why Girardi & Keese, Engstrom Lipscomb & Lack, Thomas Girardi, and Walter Lack should not be suspended, disbarred, or otherwise sanctioned as a result of the massive fraud which took place in litigation pursued by them against Dole Food Company.

On July 13, 2010, the Ninth Circuit issued an order suspending Walter Lack for a period of six months and reprimanding Girardi; the order also imposed almost $500,000 in monetary sanctions against the two attorneys.

On July 14 2010, in an attempt to conceal their attorney-client relationship, Skadden Arps and Thomas Nolan filed a motion with the Ninth Circuit asking for their names to be redacted from the published opinion.

Shortly thereafter, Skadden Arps moved ex parte (which, not surprisingly, was unopposed) to amend the settlement agreement in the Fogel matter and the notice to the class of 14 million Americans throughout the country to include a proviso by which members of the class would be prohibited from suing anyone due to the concurrent representation described above. Nevertheless, the State Bar of California decided not to take any action on this ethics complaint.

VOICE OF OC TEAM - Tom Girardi of Girardi & Keese, James Brosnahan of Morrison & Foerster and executive-director of the State Bar of California Joe Dunn of Voice of OC. Brosnahan, the self-proclaimed mastermind behind the Democratic Party and spouse of Alameda County Superior Court Judge Carol Brosnahan, gained fame after his psychiatrist -- Berkeley-based Scyzophrenia specialist Dr. Bruce Africa -- threaten to kill him due to an alleged sexual affair between Brosnahan and Marty Africa of Major Lindsey & Africa. In September of 2009, once Ruthe Ashley existed CaliforniaALL, Dunn (with the help of Escutia, Girardi and Brosnahan) launched online publication "Voice of OC." Dunn is also a trustee of UCI Foundation -- an entity which absorbed most of the grants CaliforniaALL collected from utility companies Senator Dunn officially investigated during California energy crisis.(Image: courtesy photos)

Girardi also assisted in the launching of Voice of OC, and toghether with Brosnahan served as a member of Voice of OC board of directord. Later, for unknown reasons, Girardi and Brosnahann abruptly quit the entity.

For additional reading about:

Thomas Girardi, please see HERE.

Erika Jayne, please see HERE

James Brosnahan, please see HERE

CaliforniaALL, please see HERE