| ► Attorney Joseph M. Bruno of New Orleans; deceitful opportunist |
 |
 |
|
Attorney Joseph M. Bruno of New Orleans; greedy opportunist 
The state of Louisiana presented Joseph M. Bruno with a law license in 1978.
A couple of years ago, Disciplinary Counsel found Joey guilty of misconduct that related to his actions in a class action lawsuit v. Shell Oil Company’s refinery in Norco.
After he was appointed one of eight members of the Plaintiffs’ Legal Committee (PLC) in the federal class action suit, Joey was introduced to Jack Zewe, a longtime Shell employee. Zewe told Joey that Shell’s attorneys were destroying relevant documents and “teaching witnesses to lie.” Zewe then offered to cooperate with PLC against Shell with the understanding he’d be paid for his cooperation.
Subsequently, Joey arranged several meetings with Zewe and paid him $5,000 with the agreement that Zewe would keep track of his time and expenses, and at the end of the litigation, he would apply to the court for payment as an expert witness. Joey promised Zewe that the PLC attorneys would support his application to be paid as an expert.
Shell eventually discovered that one of its employees was providing information to the PLC attorneys, and it filed a motion to disqualify all 8 of them as counsel of record for the plaintiffs. At a hearing on Shell’s motion, attorney Cummings knowingly lied when he told U.S. District Judge Henry Mentz that the PLC had made no payments to Mr. Zewe. Joe was present in court when Cummings told this blatant lie but he remained silent.
Based on Joey’s silence, the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals suspended his license to practice in the federal courts for one year.
As a consequence of his egregious misconduct, the Louisiana Supreme Court suspended Joey’s license for three years, with eighteen months deferred. Put simply, Joey lost his license for a mere 18 months.
As we speak (April 2012) Joe practices law with Bruno & Bruno at 855 Baronne Street in New Orleans.
On his website at www.brunobrunolaw.com Joey makes no mention of the fact that he was suspended by the Louisiana Supreme Court and the 5th Circuit Court of Appeals for being a deceitful opportunist. I guess if Joey was upfront by disclosing these facts, it would likely limit his future victim pool.
|