Complaint Review: Attorney Donald P. Bebereia - Irvine California

 Gabriella's report sounds similar to the experience I had with this guy only my divorce was very simple though it took three years to finally happen. This guy is the biggest liar! It would be long and drawn out to go onto a lot of details, but he enticed me to hire him saying he would get my ex-husband to pay the legal fees if I would give him a retainer of $1500 up front which I managed to do. He thought he could make a major case of this divorce because my husband was a businessman and I believe he thought he could build up this business to be more than it was. To do this though, he said he would need advanced auditing and accounting fees to estimate the actual value of the business. At this, I told him that would not be necessary because my husband and his partner were the best people to evaluate the business. I wasn't trying to wrestle something out of anybody and my husband and I both wanted to end the marriage because I was an impediment to his business dealings in that I couldn't blindly get into things by just signing papers necessary to their partnership business. But we had a daughter and I couldn't leave the state with her as I planned, even though there was no custody issue involved, until I had legal standing to do so, relying on what Bebereia told me. My daughter's life was in the balance because of the emotional stress and my health was teetering during those three years of Bebereia's games.

He tried every way to get more money out of me. When he couldn't because none was available, he asked about credit cards--none. He had me come to his office after the staff had left--supposedly to "prep" me for trial, which I believed. When I arrived, he didn't have any prepping to do and just started talking about simple matters. I didn't catch on at the time, but said I had little time to spend as my daughter was being looked after by a friend and I didn't want to take advantage of that friend.. So he dismissed me. I didn't catch on until I later learned how sleazy he is. I realized later that this case was completely out of our hands because he would call a pre-trial meeting with the four of us and spend the time only talking with the other lawyer. I guess they were negotiating the terms of their business partnership that subsequently took place. Then he told me I should not get along with my husband by accepting a ride to the meeting from him. I had no other means of getting there otherwise. Bebereia wanted us to be fighting and I guess his future partner wanted the same from the actions my daughter's father took at his lawyer's advice. These guys can be vicious cuts. I learned, and try to get a good fight going to prolong the agony, maybe get a big payoff just to go forth with the divorce instead of suffering for three years! And Bebereia would keep telling me it would be "soon". I kept relying on what he told me which was nothing because he says it was the other party refusing to agree to anything. Bebereia put an undisclosed lien on the house which was basically my equity. I found out about it later because I had been trying to sell the house. When I asked him to remove the lien, he said my husband was a flake and he didn't expect to be able to get any money out of him and to contact him when the house was sold.

When a court date was finally set by the other attorney, I found out Bebereia refused to show up until the other lawyer made him do it. How flakey is that? He participated little in the actual negotiations in court. He even took me outside the courtroom and told me to lie to get child support increased to what it would be if I told the court I was not planning to move out of state with my daughter. I refused to lie (wonder what that advantage would be to him). I couldn't even guess what these two lawyers could be conspiring to do. I only know that I was probably too innocent to even imagine what the two "partners" could conjure up! Though the judge took it upon himself to make an award to me without any interference from Bebereia, it took 6 months to finally get a written divorce decree from Bebereia, without any supporting documents to enforce my property settlement of assets. So, after three grueling years. I was divorced with no claim to the property which belonged to me. And the value of the business never became an issue in court. Then everybody was out to get the meager proceeds of the sale of the house which took place just after I left even though the balance was originally my separate property.

Didn't intend this to become so lengthy, but just wanted to give you a basis of why I would not want anyone else to suffer at this guy's hands. It might be Ok if you're a guy with no feelings, has lots of time and money to torture your own children and try to strip any remaining dignity from a woman who is the mother of those children. ALL FOR THE SAKE OF MONEY which most likely the mother and kids need just to survive. Better to go for mediation rather than get involved in the "boys Club at court". And their cruel games. Also, these court gladiators don't want to let women lawyers onto the Orange County Courthouse playing field either from what I saw there. So you have been forewarned! There's got to be justice somewhere, somehow!