Los Angeles, CA The Full Disclosure Network ® has learned that Superior Court Judge David Yaffe plans to step down from the bench in October 2010, prior to the expiration date of his elected term of office. The reasons? Presumably by retiring early the Governor will have an opportunity to name his successor rather than having a contested election to fill the spot. But there are other possible reasons for Judge Yaffe’s decision, not the least of which could be the long grueling case of jailed anti-trust attorney Richard I. Fine. Yaffe ordered Fine to be held in solitary “coercive confinement for contempt of court indefinitely, without bail, without a hearing and without a release date.
CATCH 22 KEEPS FINE IN JAIL
The Judge’s Order stated that Fine would not be released from jail until he appeared at a Debtors Hearing in Deptartment 1A and provided the court with information regarding his assets. Fine had contended he would not answer the questions until he had exhausted all his appeals as the Judge’s order was void and illegal. The Court had apparently set a Debtor Hearing date of June 14, 2010.
As the date neared a volunteer for Richard Fine attempted to arrange with the Court and Sheriff Baca’s office for transportation to the Court. Janette Isaacs related in an Email that both the Court and Sheriff refused to transport Dr. Fine to the hearing. She was told that “budget cuts” prevented them from providing the transportation. Read her Email report to Full Disclosure ® with details.
COMPAINT FILED
On June 30, 2010 Richard I. Fine lodged a formal complaint with the California Commission on Judicial Performance against Judge Yaffe. The entire document is available here
July 23rd, 2010 @ 5:56 am
And this is what will happen to you if you refuse to pay sanctions imposed by the court.
They’re coming, Dr. Orly. They’re coming for YOU!
July 23rd, 2010 @ 6:27 am
LA business Examiner..Joe Zernick article 7/1/10..
Human Rights Alert (NGO) also forwarded its complaint against Mr Bickell to the Chairs of US Congress Judiciary Committees, and urged them to initiate review of unvalidated and insecure case management systems of the US courts, which permitted conduct as documented in the complaint. The complaint was also copied to the United Nations, as part of the 2010 – first ever – review by the United Nations of Human Rights in the United States. Human Rights Alert’s April 2010 report to the United Nations alleged that unvalidated and false case management systems at the US courts were employed for large-scale deprivation of rights. [2] In paper filed by Dr Zernik for review by international computer science conference, large-scale fraud was alleged in PACER and CM/ECF – the public access and case management systems of the US courts. [3] The international computing community was urged to assume a leading role in protection of rights in the digital era.
July 23rd, 2010 @ 11:04 am
… 30 miles from where Obama was born…
https://www.plan-uk.org/involved/schools/obamaelection/
July 23rd, 2010 @ 11:17 am
Sorry, Orly, I don’t get it. Richard Fine was in contempt of court for refusing to respond to a notice of Debtor’s Examination. As an attorney, he of all people should know better. When one deliberately disobeys a court order, such as an Order to Show Cause, he/she risks imprisonment. So what is your point? That you condone his flagrant disobedience of the court?
July 23rd, 2010 @ 11:26 am
Moreover, as the Court’s order noted, Fine holds the keys his jail cell — he has been free to submit to a Debtor Examination at any time, and he will be released. The law is very clear on contempt. So long as he continues his contumacious conduct, he will remain in jail. It is his choice. I don’t understand why you want to make a crusade out this — defending a disbarred lawyer who is thumbing his nose at the court, and the mish mash of stuff you post on this website does nothing to illuminate for us why you are defending this man.
July 23rd, 2010 @ 11:34 am
the whole case looks like corruption. Legislature and Governator changed the law retroactively in the middle of the night and ordered Fine to pay attorneys fees of the other party. When he refused, they put him in prison for a year, total abuse of power by Jaffe. Thank god he is leaving the bench. Look, I can understand supplemental payments, I wouldn’t beat the drum of war over a new law, but to order an attorney who won the case according to the 3 judge panel of the court of Appeals to pay the fees of the other side, when they retroactively changed the law, and to throw him in prison for a year and a half when he refused, that where I really draw the line, this is too much.
You are an attorney. What if that is done to you? I am sure you are one of Obama’s supporters, maybe you are Scott Tepper going under a new name, not by “sternguard” anymore. Be carefull, getting a job as an alligator feeder. After you throw everyone else to alligators, you will be the last one to be eaten by them 🙂
July 23rd, 2010 @ 11:38 am
I just posted my answer.
The word mish mash doesn’t sound like Tepper, maybe his partner
July 23rd, 2010 @ 2:43 pm
The law changed? Ridiculous. The law of contempt has been the same for hundreds of years. Read the Court’s order that you linked to — I mean, really READ it. It sets out the facts. The plaintiffs obtained a judgment against Fine, a disbarred attorney who continued to practice law. He took those people for a ride, Orly. He did not advise them that he was not authorized to practice. Then, when they sought to enforce their judgment, Fine refused to submit to the Debtor Examination. The court ordered him to appear. He refused. The court held him in contempt. All of this took place several years, long before that law was amended. Long before the judge retired. Long before Arnold appointed a new judge.
You don’t get it, do you? Richard Fine is not the victim of corruption. He is the victim of his own misjudgment. Your defense of him, simply because you think the California courts have given you a raw deal, is itself indefensible. READ THE ORDER, Orly. Take the time to understand what really happened.
And no, I’m not “Tepper’s” (whoever he is) partner. Look at my IP. Orly, there are 100,000 attorneys in the United States. More than just this “Tepper” guy understand law and know what we’re talking about.
July 23rd, 2010 @ 3:56 pm
Fine represented condominium owners in Santa Monica, who were opposed to the Marina Shores development. This is your typical “Pelican brief.” He stated, that the case had to be heard by an out of county judge, since county was the party and LA county judges got nearly 50,000 supplemental salary from the county. When he started this case, he was not disbarred. Why was he targeted? Follow the money trail. This development in Santa Monica was supposed to give millions of dollars in profit. You know and I know, why he was targeted.
No, I was not born yesterday and would not go against all the judges of LA county, even I would not do it. I was not born yesterday and I understand the need to develop the city, I get it. I understand that people need to make a living. With all that said and done, this case should have been settled. If there ever was a case that should have been settled, this would be it.
Fine had a distinquished career. He was a highly respected assistant US attorney and antitrust lawyer. He didn’t cheat, he didn’t steal from his clients, he wasn’t incompetent. You tell me, why did they disbar him? The only reason they took his license, was because he was in the way and ruffled some feathers. They changed the law retroactively, allowing judges to get supplemental payments from the county, even though the county was a party to the litigation in front of them. Clear conflict of interest. He challenged it and the establishment machine went after him and disbarred him.
This matter needs to be settled. This is a blemish for the US judiciary. This standoff does not benefit anyone. What David Jaffe did, was too much. I am sure, like every Ashkenazi family he lost relatives in the Holocaust, and using such Gestapo tecnique is despicable. He should have realized, how delicate the situation was and should have worked very hard to settle. Sorry, but sometimes men show their machism in the wrong situations. Maybe there should have been a woman, settling this matter. What is the alternative? They will do Jim MacDugal to him? Too late even for that, the case is well known around the world. Maybe I should be the one to work out a settlement?
July 24th, 2010 @ 3:48 pm
Fine was disbarred for filing a stream of disqualification motions and other papers containing what the State Bar Court found to be false and frivolous charges regarding members of the state bench. The hearing judge said Fine “engaged in what amounts to an almost never-ending attack on anyone (including attorneys and judicial officers) who disagreed with him or otherwise got in his way.”
Sound familiar?
July 24th, 2010 @ 4:07 pm
Judges of Los Angeles county were getting $59,000 additional payments from the county. As a consequence, for years no attorney could win a case against the county in front of those judges. Tell me, how is it not a conflict of interest? Cases involving LA county should have been heard in other counties due to the fact that the judges of LA county got supplemental payments fronm the county on top of what was paid by the state. You find this argument to be frivolous? You believe that this is a reason to disbar him? and if so, how can you call yourself an officer of the court? how can you call yourself a decent human being for that matter?
I’ve seen and I am sure you have seen attorneys steeling from their clients, attorneys committing crimes and nothing was done by the bar, or just a warning or a slap on the wrist.
July 24th, 2010 @ 8:31 pm
And we should trust your judgment — why?