L.A. Law (TV Series)

Dummy Dearest (1988)

Jimmy Smits: Victor Sifuentes

Photos 

Quotes 

• Richard Mathers : Kuzak.

  Michael Kuzak : What are you doing here?

  Richard Mathers : I thought I'd lend you my support.

  Michael Kuzak : In exchange for what?

  Richard Mathers : You doing the same. I testify for you, you testify for me. Very symmetrical, no?

  Michael Kuzak : No.

  [Mr. Mathers talking with Mr. Sifuentes] 

  Richard Mathers : He'd be helping me out.

  Victor Sifuentes : Hey, don't look at me.

  Richard Mathers : Mike.

  Michael Kuzak : I'm sorry, but I don't want you to be my witness, and I certainly don't want to be yours.

  Richard Mathers : The first part of that is up to you. The second part's up to me.

  [Mr. Mathers handing over the subpoena to Mr. Kuzak] 

  Richard Mathers : Here's your subpoena. If you can get there by 10:00, that would be great.

  [Mr. Kuzak will take care of that] 

• Elliott Oppenheim : As the evidence clearly has established, Michael Kuzak violated Disciplinary Rule 3101 in aiding the unauthorized practice of law.

  Victor Sifuentes : If the Committee, please... In order to assess Mr. Kuzak's ethical conduct, I believe it first necessary to appreciate the circumstances under which it occurred.

  Judge Donald Tytell : In other words, you got an excuse.

  Victor Sifuentes : The discovery that Richard Mathers was unlicensed to practice law came more than halfway through the trial.

  Ralph DeSuvio : The issue here is that the court didn't learn of it until after the verdict and then from only Mr. Mathers himself.

  Victor Sifuentes : If you could just stand back from the code for one moment, I think that you'll see that the only motivation here was a fair settlement.

  Judge Constance Gregg : [Judge Gregg takes off her glasses]  We don't stand back from the code, Mr. Sifuentes. We enforce it.

  Victor Sifuentes : I understand that, ma'am. I...

  Judge Constance Gregg : Furthermore, this isn't some nitpicking technical violation we're talking about.

  [Judge Gregg looking up this file] 

  Judge Constance Gregg : These charges indicate conduct indirect violation of a lawyer's obligation as an officer of the court.

  Victor Sifuentes : All Mike Kuzak did was try to avoid having Richard Mathers' fraud force his clients into protracted litigation at considerable further expense.

  Judge Donald Tytell : That's not the concern of this Committee.

  Michael Kuzak : Well, with all due respect, maybe it should be.

  Victor Sifuentes : Mike.

  Michael Kuzak : [Kuzak has something to say. Judge Tytell listening]  If the only question here is did I or did I not violate the code, let's stop wasting each others' time. I did. But you only talk about a lawyer's obligation as an officer of the court. What about my obligation to my client?

  Elliott Oppenheim : Your first loyalty is to the legal system.

  Victor Sifuentes : The purpose of which is to administer justice. Richard Mathers was a highly skilled practitioner. There's no argument about that. Mr. Kuzak and he went head to head. Both clients received skilled, uncompromised representation. Tell me what that is if not justice.

• Judge Constance Gregg : Mr. Sifuentes, do you have anything to say before we render our decision?

  Victor Sifuentes : Only that has never been our intention to minimize the importance of ethical standards. I've simply tried to make the Committee aware of the difficulty of Mr. Kuzak's situation. Now, Mike's record both as a prosecutor and in private practice has been exemplary. I was just hope that his action be taken in context.

  Judge Constance Gregg : Mr. Kuzak, your Counsel has argued that the action of Richard Mathers justify your own. Doesn't work that way. What he did constitutes fraud. What you did constitutes devious and unethical behavior. Utterly at odds with our code of conduct. Now, since Mr. Mathers isn't an attorney, he is beyond the limits of our authority. You, sir, are not. We are your peers. We speak for our profession, and we condemn what you did. Our recommendation to the State Bar Association is that you be publicly censured and suspended from the practice of law for a period of not less than one month, effective immediately.

  Michael Kuzak : [Kuzak in shock]  A month?

  Judge Constance Gregg : Yes.

  Judge Donald Tytell : That's right, Mr. Kuzak. A month.

  Michael Kuzak : Well, I'm going sleep a lot better. Knowing that the Members of this Committee are there to pass it out pronouncements on the correctness of my conduct, especially when they don't allow themselves to be distracted by the specifics of the situation.

  Judge Constance Gregg : If your contempt for the Committee as any indication, sir, I fully expect this will not be the last time we'll be seeing you.

• Michael Kuzak : We're going to fight this out with the Bar Association in court. Let's see how smug these fat-assed Rotarians are after they've gone a few rounds with a litigator.

  Victor Sifuentes : No.

  Michael Kuzak : What do you mean "no"?

  Victor Sifuentes : Bottom line: You broke the rules, Mike. We tried to put the best face on it that we could and this is the way it came down.

  Michael Kuzak : What are you saying? You think that they're right?

  Victor Sifuentes : Yeah. And if you want my recommendation both as your friend and as your lawyer right now, I'm gonna tell you to take your medicine and be glad it's not worse.