Impersonating a lawyer

[roller2]

What is the name of your state? CA

 

[roller2]

Hi, I'm new here. I assume there are lawyers here? If you're a lawyer and you were told by an anonymous person that someone else is using your name, email address, firm name and address, what information would you want from that person to verify that it's plausible, or what evidence would you ask for? I have a suspicion someone else is using a specific attorney's name, email address, firm name and firm address, and I think I can provide a copy of the letter. I hope so anyway. Thank you in advance!

 

[Taxing Matters]

Hi, I'm new here. I assume there are lawyers here? If you're a lawyer and you were told by an anonymous person that someone else is using your name, email address, firm name and address, what information would you want from that person to verify that it's plausible, or what evidence would you ask for? I have a suspicion someone else is using a specific attorney's name, email address, firm name and firm address, and I think I can provide a copy of the letter. I hope so anyway. Thank you in advance!

It would not do much good for someone to use the same phone number, e-mail address, and mailing address as the attorney he or she was impersonating; that would lead to the impersonation being discovered pretty quick as the real attorney got things sent to him/her that he/she wouldn't recognize. Why not contact the actual attorney or the state bar to inquire about this person?

 

[HRZ]

Impersonation for what purpose...to collect money?

A lawyer is a sworn officer of the court and to impersonate same can well lead to criminal charges in CA

 

[FlyingRon]

In many cases, it wouldn't matter if the person being impersonated is a lawyer. What you could be charged with pretty much depends on what the motivation of the impersonator is. In California, it is illegal to impersonate someone (anybody) to either cause financial or legal harm to the person you are impersonating or secure some gain for yourself. It can be charged as a felony. I don't know of anything that makes lawyers special in this regard, law enforcement officers are held in special regard in most places, and in some places any "public official."

Of course, if you do something that arises to practicing law through the impersonation, that's a separate crime (and much the same if you just do it under your own identity).

 

[roller2]

It was impersonation to make empty threats to someone that he better make a public statement and apologize -- could that be considered "some gain" for the author of the letter?

Yes, I would like to contact the attorney. I just don't know all the evidence or questions he's going to ask me. So you're probably thinking why not just ask him come Monday, but I want to keep the exchange as short and simple as possible. The people involved are celebrities and I don't want to discover one day that I'm in the news or perhaps worse, make the situation worse for the person who was sent the threatening letter.

 

[cbg]

I'm not sure I'm following this.

You believe that Andy is impersonating Brandon, who is a lawyer, and in his Brandon persona has written a letter to Carl demanding that Carl issue a public apology (about what?) Is that it?

And you are...who? David?

 

[Just Blue]

It was impersonation to make empty threats to someone that he better make a public statement and apologize -- could that be considered "some gain" for the author of the letter?

Yes, I would like to contact the attorney. I just don't know all the evidence or questions he's going to ask me. So you're probably thinking why not just ask him come Monday, but I want to keep the exchange as short and simple as possible. The people involved are celebrities and I don't want to discover one day that I'm in the news or perhaps worse, make the situation worse for the person who was sent the threatening letter.

I'd bet you a cool mil that the "celebrity" in question will take the letter to his/her attorney to review.

 

[roller2]

I'm not sure I'm following this.

You believe that Andy is impersonating Brandon, who is a lawyer, and in his Brandon persona has written a letter to Carl demanding that Carl issue a public apology (about what?) Is that it?

And you are...who? David?

 

[roller2]

Yes, you got the sequence of events right.

I don't personally know any of the people involved. Just a third person (well, fourth) who is assuming most lawyers would want to know if somebody is using their name, firm address, email address, to send a threatening letter to someone else.

 

[cbg]

And what makes you think they are not already aware of it, if it is indeed happening at all?

 

[roller2]

I'd bet you a cool mil that the "celebrity" in question will take the letter to his/her attorney to review.

The one who got the letter? I heard he doesn't have a lawyer. I assumed he would, but I don't know. He didn't act like he does. He's not that famous but well-known -- perhaps C list celebrity. So maybe the attorney has heard about the letter already, but I'm not sure. I think somebody should tell him just in case.

 

[roller2]

And what makes you think they are not already aware of it, if it is indeed happening at all?

I'm not sure he's not already aware of it. I'm sure it is happening. Don't know if he's aware of the letter.

 

[cbg]

I'm asking this for a reason, and it is directly related to how I answer your initial question.

If you don't know any of these people, how are you so certain this is happening? How did you come to be aware of it at all? What is your relationship to the situation?

 

[quincy]

There are several people pretending to be Michael Avenatti.