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Manhattan Beach Attorney Disbarred Over Misuse of Funds to Feed Gambling Habit
By a MetNews Staff Writer
The State Bar of California announced yesterday that the California Supreme Court has concurred with its recommendations and ordered the disbarment of Sergio Valdovinos Ramirez, a Manhattan Beach attorney who misappropriated nearly $117,000 from his clients and used some of that money to feed his gambling habit.
Effective as of last Friday, the high court’s disbarment order follows the July 2023 State Bar Court Hearing Department’s recommendation, authored by Judge Yvette D. Roland, which found the lawyer culpable of 19 ethical violations.
In a June ruling affirming the disbarment recommendation, the State Bar Court’s Review Department said:
“Here, [Valdovinos Ramirez’s] misappropriation of client funds was unrelenting. Often, as soon as he received entrusted funds, he would deplete his bank accounts and use the entrusted funds for his own purposes, which included gambling. This misconduct was exacerbated by the additional dishonesty in which he engaged. [Valdovinos Ramirez] lied to his clients to stall the discovery of his misappropriation and his failure to follow through on work he had assured clients he had performed. A key part of this cover-up was to issue numerous checks with insufficient funds to several clients, again breaching the fundamental rule of ethics, which is honesty.”
Among other allegations, one client claims he paid Valdovinos Ramirez $73,965 in advance fees for representation in a conservatorship matter. The court found that Valdovinos Ramirez ultimately misappropriated the entire amount.
Another client hired Valdovinos Ramirez to represent him in a discrimination case against his former employer but the lawyer never filed a case despite providing a false case number to his client. He then lied to his client, saying the case had settled for $58,000, writing large checks to the client despite insufficient funds in his accounts to cover the checks.
Vadovinos Ramirez attempted to justify various delays in his work for clients and in the disciplinary proceedings by asserting that he was being treated for terminal cancer by Dr. Stephen Chang at City of Hope. An investigation by the Office of Chief Trial Counsel revealed that he was not being treated at City of Hope and there was no Dr. Stephen Chang employed by the center.
Chief Trial Counsel George Cardona said that “disbarment is entirely appropriate in this case” and remarked:
“Mr. Valdovinos Ramirez cheated his clients out of their funds, in part, to feed his gambling habit. He then showed no remorse and lied about a life-threatening illness to avoid taking responsibility for his misconduct.”
The Supreme Court also ordered Valdovinos Ramirez to make restitution to five former clients, plus 10% interest, and ordered him to pay monetary sanctions to the State Bar in the amount of $5,000.
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