Whistleblower Life — I Was Spot on Yet the Lies & Smears Continue

15 min readNov 27, 2020

Hecht Partners LLP, Goldstein & McClintock LLLP and Bradford Edwards & Varlack LLP are homes for some of the ex-Pierce Bainbridge partners who saddled up with firm founder John Pierce — ex-lawyer for Rudy Giuliani and current lawyer for Kenosha shooter Kyle Rittenhouse — and came for me.

Rudolph Giuliani hired Pierce Bainbridge Beck Price & Hecht LLP for the Ukraine fiasco in November 2019.

Over two years ago, I blew the whistle on financial foul play at Pierce Bainbridge Beck Price & Hecht LLP where I was a partner. I was viciously retaliated against by a law firm that proved to be a cesspool of lies and deceit. Perhaps fittingly, after I was gone, Rudy Giuliani hired the firm; corruption follows Rudy, and corruption appears to have been the Pierce Bainbridge way. I said Pierce Bainbridge was a financial “house of cards,” that would “collapse,” as a long-time former attorney said, I called it “100% correctly.”

Notwithstanding my truth-telling, certain of my former partners continue to be dishonest in an effort to smear and discredit me, as well as avoid accountability and liability for their misconduct.

The Deceitful Behavior of Ex-PB Named-Partner David L. Hecht

For example, ex-named partner David L. Hecht — founder of Pierce Bainbridge spin-off firm Hecht Partners LLP — has been untruthful through to deflect from his own inadequacies. Hecht has even hired lawyers in Ireland, New Zealand and New York City, to threaten, harass and spew nonsense presumably fed to them by their client.

Most recently, it appears Hecht may have suggested I knowingly published sealed materials filed in the Boeing 737 Max lawsuit. To the contrary, I have no involvement in that litigation and I obtained the materials from the public docket.

The materials appear to have struck a nerve because as they involve sworn testimony from Hecht’s own former clients in the Boeing 737 Max case saying under oath that Hecht deceived them — examples of the publicly available damning deposition excerpts are here.

Even though Hecht Partners is out of the case, Hecht has asked the court to remove transcripts from public view. In a response filed this week, other lawyers say is no legal basis to bury the materials; and that Hecht’s apparent concern about being “embarrassed” is irrelevant.

Stated differently, they basically said David “Gladiator in a Suit” Hecht needs to man up.

Take a look for yourselves — a link to the public filing is here as well.

As you likely noticed, I’m mentioned in the filing. While the filing is not publicly available, given prior issues raised about Hecht’s ethics and/or honesty from a (i) judge, (ii) ex-associate, (iii) ex-partners and (iv) ex-clients, one wonders what he may have spewed in an effort to avoid accountability for his own deceitful conduct.

To be clear, this is not just garden variety deceit, but the Hecht Partners founder’s own clients (i) agreeing Hecht was “deceitful,” (ii) saying Hecht was on “untruthful,” and (iii) suggesting Hecht pretended to be a partner at a firm where does not even work. It is well beyond garden-variety deceit, and Hecht’s efforts remind of a child who hides a toy behind the couch after breaking it. But I digress. . .

My Allegations of Financial Malfeasance Were Right on the Money

Hecht’s deceitful behavior aligns with the pervasive misconduct at Pierce Bainbridge where he was a named-partner for two years and in charge of the firm’s New York Office.

Illustratively, back in August 2019, Forbes summarized my views on the firm’s finances. The subject article said that a lengthy complaint I filed set forth “explosive and detailed allegations of serious financial improprieties,” including failure “to pay debts as they became due,” and “manipulating clients with gifts.” A 90-second video provides an overview of issues. Take a look at the video, draw your own conclusions; it is fascinating.

As noted, issues with Hecht’s ethics have come up from a variety of sources, but he was not the only one at Pierce Bainbridge. It appears to have been a top-down issue; for example, the firm’s ex-General Counsel Carolynn K. Beck, now a partner at Goldstein & McClintock, has been accused of spearheading a fraud on the court and suborning perjury in my cases, a sanctions motion is pending.

Beck was also the lead internal lawyer when the firm filed a pro se complaint against me in Los Angeles with lies in virtually every paragraph, as well as when ex-partners Denver G. Edwards (Bradford Edwards & Varlack) and Christopher N. LaVigne (Withers Bergman / Withers Worldwide) lied under oath to smear me and do John Pierce’s bidding.

Ex-Pierce Bainbridge name-partners Carolynn K. Beck and David L. Hecht. Beck was the General Counsel, Hecht the New York Office Managing Partner. Both are accused of dishonesty to courts based on filings of two separate ex-Pierce Bainbridge associates. The photo is from an interview with Proactive Investors.

Perhaps indicative of the depths of the ethical culture under Carolynn K. Beck’s General Counsel watch, are events surrounding lawyer Marc Mukasey’s relationship with the firm. Mukasey was an outside lawyer for Pierce Bainbridge from around June 2019 until he quit in March 2020.

Mukasey is not just any lawyer, Yahoo described him as the “lawyer at the center of the Trump universe,” and as “close friends with Rudy Giuliani.” Mukasey quit representing Pierce Bainbridge citing ethical concerns with continued representation. As I have said before, regardless of your political leanings, a lawyer closely affiliated with Team Trump and Rudolph Giuliani essentially saying the ethical bar it too loo, is not a good sign.

Photo from a 2016 article in South Florida Business Journal: “Rudy Giuliani and Marc Mukasey on South Florida, El Chapo and cybersecurity.” Giuliani and Mukasey were previously partners at Bracewell Giuliani.

Virage Millions & Shady Clients

Mukasey also noted concerns about payment as he exited; as it turns out, Virage Capital Management — a litigation lender who provides financial fuel to Pierce Bainbridge after I was gone — apparently stepped in to pay the legal bills for his replacement counsel. Virage had funded Pierce Bainbridge starting April 2019, by April 2020 reports of a $65 million debt surfaced, yet Virage apparently still jumped in to pay Pierce Bainbridge’ legal bills so they could continue to lie about me.

There are several oddities and unknowns around the Pierce Bainbridge and Virage situation . Indeed, we have referred $65 million Virage infusion into a fledging law firm, with no track record of success and a bevy of red flags, as a “Money Mystery,” it is difficult to reconcile. The presence of Giuliani, and three felons as Pierce Bainbridge then clients — Michael Avenatti, George Papadopoulos and Len Dykstra — does little to quell suspicions.

The Lack of Integrity and Absence of Accountability Continue

Avenatti was arrested while accompanied by an ex-Pierce Bainbridge partner at a California State Bar disciplinary hearing in January. On the topic of felonious attorneys, a lawyer named Robert Barnes has skewered John Pierce about the Kyle Rittenhouse case, and refers to Pierce Bainbridge founder as the “Michael Avenatti of the right.” Similarly, a seasoned New York City lawyer two years ago warned Pierce about following the path of former lawyer and convicted felon Marc Dreier who “ended up in jail.” Pierce may very well be trending that direction; time will tell.

A passage from my May 2019 complaint sums the lengthy filing up nicely.

Excerpt from paragraph 14 of the Lewis Complaint v Pierce Bainbridge et al. filed May 16, 2019

In my, and others’ estimation, this was a bullseye. John Pierce is a phony and, it says here, he will be exposed as such in the Rittenhouse case as well in due course.

As for my former partners, they all rode with John Pierce until the firm was in a free fall and the money apparently dried up. Scores of attorneys started after them, scores of attorneys left before them. Unlike two principled associates who’ve come forward and exposed Carolynn K. Beck and David L. Hecht, none of my former partners, or anyone else associated with the firm, has stepped up.

My former partners’ long-time affiliation with John Pierce, as well as their silence — even after learning of Pierce’s horrifyingly disturbing behavior vis-à-vis the mother of his children — speaks volumes about who each of them are as people. They hitched their wagons to John Pierce, they rode with John Pierce until the money dried up and now they stay silent for John Pierce, or in some cases, continue to actively saddle up with Pierce in efforts to smear me. As I said, speaks volumes.

I said Pierce Bainbridge was a house of cards that would collapse, a cesspool of lies and deceit, I was right on the money.

I will continue to fight to shine sunlight on the wrongdoers and expose the corruption.

Cover of darkness should not be ok for David L. Hecht deceiving his own clients, cover of darkness is not ok for the corruption that took place at Pierce Bainbridge, cover of darkness is not ok for the poor and unethical behavior that continues to be a calling card for certain individuals who were associated with the firm.

What’s done in darkness always comes to light.

My fight for justice continues.

Whistleblower Life — I Was Spot on Yet the Lies & Smears Continue

Written by dawn of justice