Editor’s Note: Law Week Colorado edits court opinion summaries for style and, when necessary, length.
According to the opinion, this reciprocal discipline case arose out of discipline imposed upon Melanie Merritt in Arizona.
In April 2023, the Attorney Discipline Probable Cause Committee of the Supreme Court of Arizona issued an order admonishing, or publicly censuring, Merritt. The admonition carries a one-year probation.
The Arizona order imposing the admonition states while prosecuting a minor who was represented by counsel, Merritt engaged the minor’s father in plea negotiations Merritt knew would reach the minor, without defense counsel’s knowledge or consent.
The Presiding Disciplinary Judge approved the parties’ stipulation to reciprocal discipline and publicly censured Merritt, which was effective Sept. 27.
People v. Jean A. Abrahamson Pirzadeh (21PDJ066)
According to the opinion, in 2022 Jean Abrahamson Pirzadeh was suspended from the practice of law for one year and one day, all to be stayed upon the successful completion of an 18-month period of probation. Abrahamson Pirzadeh’s probationary terms included practice monitoring conditions requiring her to submit practice monitor reports. However, Abrahamson Pirzadeh stopped submitting the required reports after November 2022 and stopped meeting her practice monitor in March 2023. Abrahamson Pirzadeh also violated the conditions of her probation by engaging in additional misconduct, according to the opinion, for which she stipulated to a separate one-year-and-one-day suspension in case number 23PDJ045.
The Presiding Disciplinary Judge approved the parties’ amended stipulation to revoke Abrahamson Pirzadeh’s 18-month period of probation, lift the stay on her one-year-and-one-day period of suspension and suspend her for one year and one day. The suspension took effect Sept. 27. To be reinstated to the practice of law in Colorado after her suspension, Abrahamson Pirzadeh must prove by clear and convincing evidence she has been rehabilitated, has complied with all disciplinary orders and rules and is fit to practice law.
People v. Jean A. Abrahamson Pirzadeh (23PDJ045)
In 2019, Jean Abrahamson Pirzadeh represented a client who was injured in a vehicular accident. From November 2019 to August 2020, the client received medical treatment from a treatment provider, who asserted a lien on the recovery in the client’s case.
According to the opinion, in September 2019 and March 2020, Abrahamson Pirzadeh settled two claims on her client’s behalf but didn’t notify the treatment provider about either settlement. In August 2020, Abrahamson Pirzadeh sent a written request that the treatment provider reduce the lien amount by 50%. The treatment provider responded the next month, stating they would accept a 35% reduction. But Abrahamson Pirzadeh’s firm didn’t respond to the offer or to the treatment provider’s subsequent communications.
In November 2021, a suspended lawyer working at Abrahamson Pirzadeh’s firm emailed the treatment provider to negotiate a settlement. The next month, the lawyer verbally requested the treatment provider reduce the lien amount by 40%. In January 2022, the treatment provider sent Abrahamson Pirzadeh’s firm a demand for the full lien amount. Though Abrahamson Pirzadeh appears to have maintained the contested funds in her firm’s trust account, she hasn’t disbursed any money to the treatment provider.
The Presiding Disciplinary Judge approved the parties’ amended stipulation to discipline and suspended Abrahamson Pirzadeh for one year and one day. The suspension took effect Sept. 27. To be reinstated to the practice of law in Colorado after her suspension, Abrahamson Pirzadeh must prove by clear and convincing evidence she has been rehabilitated, has complied with all disciplinary orders and rules and is fit to practice law.
According to the opinion, Thomas Blumenthal represented a client in a criminal matter that was set for trial Dec. 1, 2021, the same day Blumenthal’s suspension from another disciplinary case was scheduled to take effect. As the trial date approached, Blumenthal didn’t inform the presiding court or the deputy district attorney in the case he would be unable to appear for the trial.
The opinion said, at the pretrial readiness conference Nov. 22, when the judge asked about the priority level of the case, Blumenthal deferred to the DDA, who announced ready for trial. Though Blumenthal had known the effective date of his suspension for 75 days, he didn’t directly notify the court or the DDA of his suspension until 4:32 p.m. on the eve of trial, when he moved to withdraw from the case and filed a notice of withdrawal due to his suspension. On Dec.1, 2023, no lawyer appeared on behalf of Blumenthal’s client, who told the court he didn’t have any discovery and wanted to find another lawyer. The court continued the case.
In a different matter, Blumenthal represented a client in two criminal cases. In October 2021, at a pretrial readiness conference for both cases according to the opinion, Blumenthal aggressively leaned over the prosecution’s table, accused the DDA in the cases of lying to him or to the court about service on the victim, and stated the DDA didn’t know what she was doing. The DDA feared Blumenthal was going to physically harm her, the opinion said. The presiding judge, who felt that Blumenthal was completely out of control and “scary,” also feared Blumenthal might strike the DDA, according to the opinion. Later that day, when another case was on the record, Blumenthal returned to the courtroom and interrupted the same DDA to ask for her name. The cases were transferred to another division under a different DDA.
The Presiding Disciplinary Judge approved the parties’ stipulation to discipline and suspended Blumenthal for one year and one day. The suspension takes effect Nov. 2. To be reinstated to the practice of law in Colorado after his suspension, Blumenthal must prove by clear and convincing evidence that he has been rehabilitated, has complied with all disciplinary orders and rules and is fit to practice law.