When it rains, it pours, on city contract attorney Mark E. Sossi, that is.
For the second time within the last three months, yet another dissatisfied customer is seeking relief in the local courts alleging that Sossi's performance in their litigation amounts to nothing more than legal malpractice. The lawsuit was filed April 23 in the 138th District Court.
The case is similar to that filed against Sossi – also through Zavalett'a law office – by Brownsville Independent School District teacher and soccer coach Jesus Abete. Abete filed his lawsuit against the city's contract attorney Feb. 13 in the 357th District Court.
Abete claimed s in his lawsuit that he "duly signed a contract" with Sossi and that the attorney signed the contract to represent him to recover legal damages sustained as a result of the accident. The Oliveira Middle School algebra and math teacher also claims that Sossi represented to him that the case was timely filed in court.
"In the ensuing months, (Sossi) repeatedly lied to (Abete), and misrepresented the true facts of the underlying lawsuit to (him).
"The truth is that (Sossi) never filed suit on behalf of Abete, and by law, suit had to be filed before the statute of limitations expired. The statute of limitations is two years from the
date of the accident (January 2, 2009) Jan. 8, 2011. If the suit was not filed by then, (Abete's) rights would have been forever extinguished," the lawsuit states."(Sossi) failed to file (Abete's) suit," it continues. "Now that the statute of limitations has expired, (Abete) is forever barred from recovering damages for the serious personal injuries he suffered in the (crash).
This time Rogelio and Ingrid Gonzalez, also of Brownsville, say that in representing them in a real-estate dispute with a bank and title company, Sossi:
* engaged in conduct, acts, and omissions below acceptable professional standards;
* engaged in conduct, acts, and omissions below standards of good and workmanlike legal services;
*was negligent;
* breached a warranty implied in law of good and workmanlike legal services; breached an express warranty of competence and skill to handle this type of case;
*breached an implied warranty of competence and skill to handle this type of case;
*committed acts and omissions of professional negligence;
*breached his contract to represent plaintiff in a skilled and competent manner; and
*committed fraud.
The Gonzalez's lawsuit stems from a purchase of two lots in the Gem Estates Subdivision that unbeknownst to them carried a lien from a bank (Hibernia) and when that bank was bought out by another, the new bank Capitol Bank, it moved to foreclose on them, as it did another couple who also had interest in the lots.
Like Abete, the couple charged that even though Sossi told them he was on top of the case, in the end, they found out that he had not been totally truthful with them and that their lawsuit had been dismissed by the court "for want of prosecution" on Sossi's part.
The Gonzalezs, as did Abete, said Sossi had failed in his duty and had by his actions allowed their case to be dismissed by not acting on their behalf as per their contract with him for his services.
The couple had contracted Sossi to represent them on January 28, 2008 and after years of delays, found out that the court had dismissed their case on Sept. 16, 2010.
They found out that one of the defendants in the case – Southern Texas Title Company – filed a "motion to dismiss for want of prosecution" which was later submitted to the court Sept. 14.
According to court records, on the date of the status hearing (Sept. 15) "Mark E. Sossi...failed to appear."
Counsel for the company addressed the "repeated failures of (Sossi) to comply with the court's instructions of June 3, 2009, the agreement of plaintiffs' counsel announced in open court at a hearing on Oct. 14, 2009, to amend their pleadings to correct certain deficiencies of parties."
The court, after reviewing and considering the pleadings on file in the case, the procedural history of the case, the docket entries in the case, all of which reflect the failure of the plaintiffs to comply with the court;'s instructions and orders or to prosecute their case with due diligence...the court is of the opinion that...the above-styled and numbered case should be dismissed."
Even after the dismissal and the receipt of an email from the company to the court and copied to Sossi of the signed court order, Sossi never challenged or appealed from the dismissal of his clients' cae, including that of the Gonzalez's."
In fact, the couple said that Sossi never even informed them of the dismissal or replied to her email on Sept. 26, 2010 inquiring about the progress of their claim.
Like Abete before them, the Gonzalez couple claimed that Sossi committed legal malpractice:
*In failing to timely comply with court orders that he correct the defects in parties and correct pleading deficiencies;
*In failing to convene the telephone conferences setting trial as ordered by the court;
*In failing to respond to the motion to dismiss for want of prosecution;
*In failing to appear at a hearing on the motion to dismiss for want of prosecution;
*In failing to move to reinstate, or to move for a new trial following entry of the order dismissing the case for want of prosecution; and
*In failing to timely appeal the order dismissing the case for want of prosecution.
The couple – as did Abete before them – ask the court to grant them actual damages plus interest as required by law, punitive damages, interest on the judgement at the highest legal rate, attorney's fees, costs of court and any other relief as may be justified."
The Abete vs. Sossi case is scheduled for announcements Aug. 29 with a trial to follow Sept. 4, 2012. The Gonzalez case has not been set.
9 comments:
Theres no doubt that the City has alot of loosers working. Out of all good and great attorneys there is here in Brownsville they had to hire a looser like Sossi. Damn.
Sossi is incompetent. Not the sharpest tool in the shed.
Sossi is not exactly a workaholic. He turns most of the harder stuff at the city over to Navarro, an outside law firm.
He's been dawdling with a simple ethics code for the city for almost a year. He's a do-nothing figurehead.
I'm sorry that Sossi's incompetence and slothfulness hurt these plaintiffs, but they have to take some personal advocacy in these matters. You have to keep checking to see if your mechanic, contractor or legal professional is doing anything to earn their pay.
Sossi began screwing up from the very beginning. He was put in place to cut a deal with the police officers on a contract lawsuit that had weak merits. Before the suit was heard in appeals court, he was directed by Carlos Cisneros, at the time running against Melissa Zamora, to "settle" the lawsuit in order to garner the police officers endorsement. It was quietly passed and no one cried or bitched about it even though the other idiot contract attorney Rick Navarro advised the City Commission against Sossi's deal due to a "me too" liability with the other civil service employees. That was the only time Navarro made sense because he too has just lost that lawsuit to the Fire Fighters. Amazing how the City keeps accepting failure from their legal advisors and keep increaseing their liabitlity by not resolving these losses in a timely manner....Judges include interest on judgements and they keep growing - completely wreckless!!!!
Sossi is not accustomed to working for his money.
Another one bites the dust. Drain the swamp. I'm all for it.
what a Cool arrow and keeps on collecting a check every month from the city. taxpayers wake up????<<<>>>?????
LOOSERS!
In this matter can a business investment attorney
or Sossi can be filed with disbarment cases?
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