Ethics
Lawyer suspended after criticizing consumer’s mothering abilities in response to damaging assessment
The Colorado Supreme Court docket not too long ago suspended a lawyer for numerous causes, together with making damaging remarks a couple of consumer on Fb. (Picture from Shutterstock)
A Denver lawyer who referred to as a consumer “a horrible mom” in response to a damaging Fb assessment has been suspended from regulation apply for her on-line feedback and her conduct in three different circumstances.
Bernadette Teresa Gonzales has been suspended for 9 months, with solely 60 days to be served if she efficiently completes a two-year probationary interval, in line with an Aug. 29 summary of motion by the Colorado Supreme Court docket’s presiding disciplinary choose.
The Denver Post reported on the suspension, which begins on Oct. 3.
The damaging assessment, posted on the Facebook page for Gonzales’ regulation agency, mentioned Gonzales is a “horrible lawyer” who “doesn’t do her job and is a nasty impolite individual.”
Gonzales replied within the feedback part. “Watch out of this lady and her household,” Gonzales wrote. “She is a horrible mom. She permits her youngsters to break different folks’s property after which blames everybody else. She doesn’t like listening to the reality about her lack of parenting nor the nugatory little one she raised. Simply one other dysfunctional household elevating entitled youngsters.”
In line with the suspension order, in different issues, Gonzales:
• Didn’t reply particular person interrogatories in a lawsuit filed towards her by a contract paralegal.
• Didn’t preserve copies of any settlement or communications in regards to the foundation or price for her charges for one consumer.
• Didn’t set a listening to for everlasting orders in a consumer’s home relations matter, resulting in dismissal of the case.
Gonzales didn’t reply to the ABA Journal’s request for remark when reached by cellphone.
Write a letter to the editor, share a story tip or update, or report an error.