Attorney Accused Of 'Extreme And Egregious' Behavior Over Harassing Emails To Biglaw

The harassing emails reportedly caused opposing counsel to fear for their lives.

gavel-3575414_640Chicago attorney Felipe Gomez is facing ethics charges following allegations he sent “extreme and egregious” harassing and threatening emails to opposing counsel at both Barnes & Thornburg and Fox Rothschild. The conduct allegedly caused the opposing attorneys to fear for their lives.

The report and recommendation by the hearing board of the Illinois Attorney Registration & Disciplinary Commission, while falling short of recommending disbarment, does recommend a three-year suspension to continue until further order of the court. The bulk of the ethics complaints come from a case where Gomez was a plaintiff against the Charles Schwab Corp. and Cubesmart. In that case, Cubesmart was represented by Christina Sanfelippo of Fox Rothschild, and Charles Schwab was represented by Vincent P. Schmeltz III of Barnes & Thornburg.

As reported by ABA Journal, the commission’s report detailed the following interactions (Steven Badger, general counsel at Barnes & Thornburg, and Jeffrey Widman, Fox Rothschild’s Chicago managing partner, were also involved in the correspondence as it escalated):

• Sent an email to Schmeltz on Easter 2019 that said, “You sir are despicable and unfit to practice law and I pledge to bring the full weight of justice down on you.” Gomez allegedly sent the email after Schmeltz told Gomez that a subpoena was premature because the parties had not yet conferred.

• Sent a second Easter email calling Schmeltz “Shmuchs” and telling him that he is “engaged in active tampering and obstruction.” The email said Gomez considered Schmeltz and his law firm “an active criminal.”

• Sent another Easter email calling Schmeltz “scum” and telling him to “resign and plea to FBI.”

• Sent an email to Badger asserting that Schmeltz and Barnes & Thornburg “are scum of the Earth and need to be abated. Under RICO I am private AG and doing the abating.” The email was sent after Badger asked Gomez to stop making improper personal attacks in communications.

• Sent an email to Sanfelippo saying he intended “to RICO you, personally, your firm, and your client.” He sent the email after Sanfelippo filed a motion for sanctions.

• Sent an email to Sanfelippo and Fox Rothschild’s managing partner that said: “Liars will be prosecuted. Sanfelippo is a Target … with your firm. I am dead serious.”

• Sent an email to Widman in May 2019 that told him to “get ready for judgment day.”

The commission also cited separate interactions with Chicago’s chief assistant corporation counsel:

• Left a voicemail with Chicago’s chief assistant corporation counsel, Amber Ritter, in September 2018 in which he sang “99 Bottles of Beer of the Wall.” Gomez left the voicemail after seeking city records.

• Sent dozens of emails to Ritter demanding that she resign and accusing her of police misconduct. Gomez sent the emails beginning in September 2018 after Ritter refused to shake Gomez’s hand in court because she considered prior emails and voicemail disturbing.

Gomez has denied the allegations, and claimed his actions are protected speech:

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Gomez said in a press release the board report is a loss for the Illinois Attorney Registration & Disciplinary Commission’s litigation counsel, who had sought a penalty of disbarment during her closing argument.

The panel evidently rejected the request, “which is what the headline should be,” said the press release forwarded to reporters.

The press release said the ethics complaint did not mention any disbarment and is generic in its relief request.

“It is ironic that the discipliner feels it need not obey the rules while it pillories someone for emails that violate no rules but rather subjective ‘sensibilities’ of persons whom the emails were not intended for, not to mention the content is clearly ‘speech,’ not ‘conduct,’” the press release said.

The board report “is only a recommendation, to be parsed and then considered as part of a larger picture by [the Illinois Supreme Court], then SCOTUS if and as needed,” the press release said.

However, in April 2021, the Illinois Supreme Court suspended Gomez on an interim basis, as reported by Reuters.

If Gomez’s name seems familiar, he is the same attorney that filed suit against a San Antonio doctor who wrote a Washington Post op-ed admitting to violating Texas’s SB8 that bans on abortions after 8 weeks.


Kathryn Rubino is a Senior Editor at Above the Law, host of The Jabot podcast, and co-host of Thinking Like A Lawyer. AtL tipsters are the best, so please connect with her. Feel free to email her with any tips, questions, or comments and follow her on Twitter (@Kathryn1).

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