A San Antonio attorney was hit with two lawsuits within weeks of each other, both alleging that he used lawyer trust accounts to collect millions of dollars and then broke promises of huge returns—a move one plaintiff called a Ponzi scheme.
The San Antonio Express-News has the story.
First, Boca Raton, Florida-based I.C. Deposits Development Inc. filed a suit in Bexar County, Texas, alleging that it sent $5 million into attorney Edward Valdespino’s IOLTA account—or attorney trust account—after saying it would receive $50 million in returns tied to a private investment transaction.
Then a New York couple, Kevin and Holly Wyse, filed a suit in federal court alleging that Valdespino and Waco, Texas, law firm Naman, Howell, Smith & Lee persuaded them to wire $1 million into Valdespino’s IOLTA account, with false promises that their money would increase to $10 million within 45 days. The payoff never happened.
Valdespino said he “vehemently” denies the allegations in both suits, according to the story, and that Naman Howell, where Valdespino is listed as “of counsel,” had no involvement in the Wyse matter.
“No firm financial or IOLTA accounts were utilized for any transaction outlined,” said Larry Warren, the president of Naman Howell, in an email to the San Antonio Express-News. “Any involvement by Ed Valdespino was of his own accord and not related to any work he was doing with the firm.”
