| ► Attorney Hugo Moras of South Orange, NJ; deadbeat repeater |
 |
 |
|
Attorney Hugo Moras of South Orange, NJ; deadbeat repeater 
The state of New Jersey presented Hugo Moras with a law license in 1975.
The New Jersey Office of Attorney Ethics found Hugo guilty of the following misconduct.
Commingled personal funds with trust account funds
Willfully deposited attorney fees into a non-business account
Engaged in conduct involving fraud, deceit, dishonesty or misrepresentation
An audit of Hugo’s books revealed the following misconduct involving Hugo’s trust accounts:
Additionally, rather than deposit legal fees into an attorney business account as required, Hugo deposited the fees into the account of Frances DeBeau his girlfriend and personal secretary.
The main reason that Hugo deposited his legal fees into his girlfriend’s personal checking account was to avoid attachment of those funds by his creditors. Hugo owed the IRS $171,000. He also owed Saint Barnabas Medical Center $227,712 on a court judgment it previously obtained against him. Hugo’s scam worked since it rendered the levies by the IRS and Saint Barnabas to be worthless. Subsequently, Hugo filed a Chapter 7 bankruptcy.
As one would suspect, this wasn’t Hugo’s 1st bite at the Attorney Misfit Apple Tree. Hugo’s prior 5 bites are as follows:
1993 – Hugo received complimentary 180-day suspension for (a) commingling funds, (b) numerous recordkeeping violations and (c) failing to maintain proper records of clients funds.
1996 – Hugo suspended for 15-days for failing to comply with his child support obligations
1997 – Hugo received complimentary reprimand for recordkeeping violations and failure to properly supervise non-attorney office staff
1997 – Hugo suspended for 27-days for failing to comply with his child support obligations
2005 – Hugo received his 2nd complimentary reprimand for failing to keep client informed about status of matter, failing to communicate with client, and failing to provide client written fee agreement stating the basis for his fee.
As a consequence of his misconduct, the Patron Saints for Attorney Misfits sitting on the New Jersey Supreme Court punished Hugo by gifting him with a complimentary 90-day suspension of his law license.
As we speak (ca. February 2013) Anthony practices at 519 South Orange Avenue in South Orange, New Jersey.
|
