Attorneys, Litigation and the Legal System

Update as of 10-15-2018 -- The case has been dismissed by both parties.  As we have agreed to move forward, the dismissed case will remain confidential.

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Los Angeles Superior Court

Mission Statement

The Los Angeles Superior Court is dedicated to resolving and recording legal matters while upholding the following values:

Fairness - Administer individual justice in individual cases and treat all people with respect and dignity. Accessibility - Equally serve all people and consistently work to identify and remove barriers to access. Integrity - Protect individual rights and liberties and protect the confidentiality of court participants as required by law; develop employees who conduct themselves ethically and professionally. Responsiveness and Responsibility - Address the public's needs in an efficient, effective, courteous way, using innovative methods and maintaining accountability.                                     -- Los Angeles Superior Court, website.

This mission statement sounds reassuring, doesn't it? The problem is that in a Civil Case you will LOSE if you don't have the money for an attorney. If you are the victim in a civil matter, filing a lawsuit on your own without legal representation is risky and will probably result in dismissal or a counterclaim if the other party gets an attorney.

If you are the party that gets sued, you will certainly lose if you don't have proper legal representation. And if you don't have money to hire an attorney, it is just as if you were going to war without a shield or any weapon.

I DID NOT choose to be involved in this lawsuit. It was Victor Alfieri who initiated the legal war and the horrendous scandal.

Attorneys

Dealing with attorneys during the litigation of this case has been a saga as well. It is not my intention to say anything that might be perceived as negative. For that reason, I will be omitting real names and will use "Attorney 1,2,3..." 

August 3, 2011 - Victor Alfieri secretly withdraws the rest of MY investment from the Production bank account. He disconnects his telephone (or changes his number) and disappears for a couple of days.

During the whole month of August, Victor assures that he has merely moved the money to a different account, that the money is "intact." I demand to see proof of that. He refuses to show any evidence.

Trying to Simply Get My Money Back

September 7, 2011 - An attorney friend of mine, Attorney 1, drafts and sends a letter to Victor Alfieri and Bondolini Productions on my behalf. The letter simply asks for the money to be returned to me as it was not part of the signed agreement. I also offer to invest a portion of that amount in post-production when the money is returned to me.

September 21, 2011 - Victor Alfieri files a lawsuit against me and starts a scandal that travels around the world. Attorney 1 asks for a retainer agreement to be signed requiring immediate payment. At this point, I do NOT have any cash available. She suggests that I get a loan or ask my mother for money. It is understandable to expect to be compensated for your services. However, immediate payment is not an option for me at this time.

Embarking on the Most Challenging Legal Journey

September 26, 2011 - Attorney 2 is willing to represent me without requiring any money up front. She finds the case interesting. She actually happened to have read the articles that had been posted all over the internet even before I contacted her.

Attorney 2 does extensive work in reviewing my documents, emails, text messages, contracts etc. I believe I am in good hands. She starts communicating as my lawyer with Roger Muse, Alfieri's attorney, on September 30, 2011.  

Early October, 2011 - Attorney 2 starts doubting me and says, "Oh well, yes, he said some bad things about you, but what you did was worse. You are going to lose this case." What I did was worse??? What did I do? He is the one who sued me and slandered me! I can hear the frustration in her voice every time we talk on the phone. She is a young attorney with very little experience. She probably is intimidated by Mr. Muse and the complexity of this case. Plus, she has not been paid a penny at this point. It is time to let her go. I cannot be represented by someone who does not believe in me or my case. 

October 13, 2011 - I am referred to Attorney 3, a Harvard Law graduate, brilliant young lawyer with some experience in this type of cases. I gather all my savings to pay for the retainer. Attorney 3 assures me that he will use his time wisely and will not over bill me. The whole initial retainer is used up by November 10th when we file my cross-complaint.  I don't really have any more money to continue fighting. This attorney is charging me a minimum of $100 for every phone call we have. I start talking to friends to get referrals to other attorneys who might be able to do it on a contingency.

Early December, 2011 - I get a referral to a very successful law firm with extensive experience in high profile cases with media coverage. Attorney 4, patiently listens to me. He tells me that his law firm does not take cases on a contingency. He also suggests that I look into my renter's insurance or umbrella policy, as these policies generally cover legal defense for Defamation and Slander.

My Litigation Costs are Covered by Insurance?

Late December, 2011 - Attorney 4 was right. My renter's and umbrella policy covers this type of cases. I get Attorney 5 appointed by American Family Insurance. Attorney 5 takes a couple of weeks to find time to communicate with me. Time is crucial in this case as we have deadlines to respond to motions and filings. When I finally get to talk to Attorney 5 on the phone, she says, "this sounds like an interesting case. I have never handled anything like this before." Hearing her say that makes me feel uneasy. I decide to look for other options, other attorneys with proper experience and qualifications to handle my case.

January 6, 2011 - I meet with Attorney 6. He is partners with Attorney 4 and a very well-known attorney who knows exactly how to handle this type of cases. He has no problem confronting the media and is brilliant in his legal strategies. He meets with me for over three hours. We agree to contact American Family Insurance to ask to have him appointed as my attorney. Attorney 6 is willing to work for the rate paid by the insurance company (33% of his regular rate). He remains in constant contact with me through the whole process of trying to get American Family Insurance's approval. 

I contact American Family Insurance to voice my concerns about Attorney' 5's lack of experience in this type of cases and to ask to have Attorney 6 appointed to represent me. They demand that I first meet with Attorney 5's partner - an older attorney with more experience.  I set up an appointment to personally meet Attorney 7.

January 13, 2011 - I meet with Attorney 7 in person. Although he is a very pleasant person, it seems to me that he has not even reviewed my case when his office has had the files for over two weeks.  What I can say is that after working with this attorney for a while, he seems genuinely interested in helping me and work hard on my case. At this point, I am just concerned that his law firm has not had cases such as mine before, with slander on the media and all this entertainment gossip.

Cumis Counsel

I contact my insurance company immediately and again request Attorney 6 to be appointed to defend my case. The answer from the American Family Insurance's adjuster is NO again. I request to talk to this adjuster's supervisor. I am thinking that it will be easy to resolve this issue since it will not cost them any more to have my attorney of choice. I am paying my premiums. Therefore, I should get proper coverage and decent representation.

I talk to this supervisor on the phone. While I am asking him to please consider appointing the attorney I have selected, "shut up and listen," he says, "we will not pay for Attorney 6 to represent you. I know who he is. I have read about him on the internet. I don't like him. I don't trust him. You will have the attorney WE choose."

I hire Attorney 8 to represent me against my insurance company. I pay a reasonably low amount to retain him. Attorney 8 specializes in insurance company cases, policies, contracts etc. He believes that we can get Attorney 6. Under my policy, my insurance company is required to pay for two attorneys, their attorney and an attorney of my choice. The reason is that I would not be covered if found responsible for punitive damages. Therefore, I have the right to have two attorneys represent me... and one can be selected by me or Cumis counsel. American Family Insurance ignores Attorney 8's requests. 

February 2, 2012 - American Family Insurance offers a second choice to me, Attorney 9. He works at a huge law office with a great reputation. At this point, I still want Attorney 6 to represent me and Attorney 8 is working to get the Insurance Company to do the right thing. Per my policy with American Family, I have to cooperate with their attorney in the litigation of the case otherwise I can lose my coverage completely. So I agree to have Attorney 9 represent me while I continue pursuing the appointment of Attorney 6. Attorney 9 also agrees to represent me on the Cross-Complaint. We sign a retainer.

Discovery and Amended Cross-Complaint

I provide this attorney with multiple text messages and IM messages that clearly prove that Victor and I had an intimate relationship. Attorney 9 has a meeting with me and says, "it is almost impossible that a jury would not believe that you and Victor were in an intimate relationship." I ask Attorney 9 to please wait to provide this part of the discovery to Victor's counsel. I say to him, "as soon as we file the proposed amended cross-complaint, we can provide Alfieri with the rest of the discovery. I just want an opportunity to have this officially filed so it can become public record." Attorney 9 smiles at me while he shakes my hand, "deal!"

March, 2012 - I, myself, drafted a proposed cross-complaint including details, names and allegations that have been previously omitted. Attorney 9 added the cause of action for slander as I requested. He and his office lost touch with me for about two or three weeks.

March 22, 2012 -  American Family Insurance agrees to appointment of Attorney 6 as Cumis counsel. Now Attorney 6 wants a higher rate. So we make this request to American Family Insurance.

Loss of Coverage

April 2, 2012 -  My coverage counsel, Attorney 8, emails me a letter from American Family informing me that I no longer have coverage because the lawsuit against me has been dismissed. The lawsuit was dropped on March 30th and my "defense" attorney did not have the courtesy to inform me????  He knew that the worst that could happen to me was to have the complaint against me dismissed, as I would lose my insurance coverage and would not be able to pursue my cross-complaint.

Attorney 6 wrote to my coverage counsel the following:

"They sold her out. Now she has to fund litigation on her own so the other side expects her to fold. Should never have trusted panel counsel this is what you get."

April 3, 2012 - I finally get to talk with Attorney 9. He continues being my attorney in my lawsuit against Alfieri.  He now tells me that he is not willing to file my amended cross-complaint because it seems that it is personal retaliation. For Amended Cross-Complaint, go to "Fighting Back". In fact, he refuses to represent me anymore and threatens to file a motion to be relieved as counsel.

On that same day, I receive the following email from Attorney 6 which reflects exactly how I am feeling at this precise moment:

"You got screwed. I am sure the panel counsel conspired with the carrier and told Muse that he would have to deal with ME and to make it worse at no cost to you if they kept their complaint against you. So they dismissed. The carrier won. Muse's client won. You lost.

"No reason to meet. You cannot afford me. Sorry on this one but you played it wrong. You shouldn't have gone with the first attorney the panel selected for you."

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Disclaimer -- As of October 15, 2018, all legal issues have been resolved. This resolution was reached during arbitration. There are no pending issues related to fraud or theft. The resolution was mutually agreeable. There will be no more posts written about this story.