Compensation - Empty Handed

Compensation - Empty Handed

By Jordana Mishory
Daily Business Review
January 4, 2007

About 4,000 asbestos clients of disbarred attorney Louis Robles will have to find another way to recoup the $13.5 million their former lawyer stole from them after a federal judge threw out their claim against The Florida Bar.

In an unusual class action suit filed last January, the plaintiffs claimed a security fund maintained by the Bar to compensate clients victimized by dishonest attorneys applied to them, and their claims should be paid in full.

The suit argued that the Bar’s failure to pay a lump sum denied the plaintiffs their due process and equal protection rights under the U.S. Constitution.

But U.S. District Judge Willis B. Hunt Jr. of Georgia disagreed in a dismissal order Dec. 22. He denied the plaintiffs’ claims with prejudice, barring them from re-filing.

The judge, who handled the case after the recusal of Miami judges, concluded the 11th Amendment gives the Bar immunity because it is a regulatory arm of the state Supreme Court.

Hunt also ruled the plaintiffs did not follow the correct procedure to obtain money from the Clients’ Security Fund. Victims of attorney malfeasance must apply individually, according to the Bar.

Robles, a once-prominent Miami plaintiff attorney, was indicted in May on 41 federal counts of mail fraud and misappropriating the $13.5 million in settlement funds from asbestos clients.

He was disbarred in 2003 after a four-year investigation by the Bar. He filed for bankruptcy shortly afterward.

Plaintiff attorney Thomas Tew of Miami said he requested the lump-sum payment to provide timely payments to his clients. He said applying individually would be difficult because many of Robles’ clients are old, sick, out-of-state and unaware of what they are owed.

“Many of Robles’ victims don’t know that they were victims and don’t know how much was stolen from them,” Tew said in an interview. “Everyone is treating them like sophisticated stockbrokers filing claims in class actions.”

Tew, a partner at Tew Cardenas in Miami, said he would appeal Judge Hunt’s decision. In the interim, he said he would work toward filing individual claims.

The fund, however, does not contain nearly enough money to cover the claims.

The fund had a little more than $3 million in July 2005, the start of the Bar’s fiscal year, according to attorney Jennifer Coberly, a partner at Zuckerman Spaeder who represented the Bar. She did not have a more up-to-date figure but said it was normal for the start of the year.

Bar representatives who oversee the fund could not be reached for comment. Bar president Henry M. Coxe III did not return a call for comment before deadline.

Created in 1967, the fund comes from a portion of attorneys’ annual dues and can pay up to $50,000 per claim.

Tew asked the Bar to levy a $178 special assessment on active members to cover the losses by Robles’ clients.

“Some of the people have been without a settlement since 1992,” Tew said. “They were victimized by a disease, by their lawyer, and now they must wait to be possibly compensated if the Bar elects to do so.”

The case was moved in April from U.S. District Court in Miami to Atlanta after two South Florida judges recused themselves because they are members of the Bar.

Chief U.S. District Judge William Zloch asked the 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals to appoint an outside judge to handle the case.

Robles, a mass torts attorney, was accused of stealing $800,000 from client trust funds and overcharging thousands of asbestos clients. He closed his two law centers and dumped boxes of files in a Miami warehouse.

In 2003, Miami-Dade Circuit Chief Judge Joseph P. Farina Jr. appointed Tew as inventory attorney for the Robles cases.

The federal indictment includes a criminal forfeiture provision seeking $13.5 million to compensate his former clients. Two of Robles’ bank accounts and two investment accounts have been frozen.

The $13.5 million owed to asbestos plaintiffs also is the basis of an unsecured claim in Robles’ bankruptcy case.

Drew Dillworth, the bankruptcy trustee in Robles’ case, did not return calls for comment by deadline.

Judge Hunt ruled the asbestos plaintiffs failed to state a claim for constitutional violations. The court also ruled the plaintiffs did not fall into any of the 11th Amendment exceptions because they didn’t name an individual or request injunctive relief and were solely seeking monetary relief.

“It was a very clear case that the 11th Amendment immunity did apply,” Bar attorney Coberly said.

The court also rejected Tew’s claim that the Bar violated his clients’ equal protection rights.

“It is abundantly clear to the court that plaintiff cannot allege the existence of a class of people similarly situated in all relevant respects who were treated different,” Hunt wrote.

The plaintiffs never alleged other people attempted to obtain money from the Bar fund who did not submit the proper forms, he noted.

None of Robles’ clients has received money from the Bar fund. Tew said he hopes his clients can receive some money in the bankruptcy case or the federal prosecution, but he is not optimistic.

“They deserve justice and haven’t received any justice in this damn case,” he said.

Miami Lawyer Is "Case in Point" for Ethics Expert

By John T. Fakler
South Florida Business Journal
June 16, 2006

Lawyer and author Vince Megna has his own theory of relativity for legal ethics: Lap dancers don't take checks for a reason. And those business ethics are sounder than the ones belonging to some attorneys he knows - particularly one in Miami.

Megna, a lemon law and personal injury attorney who says he practices "just 377 miles from Detroit," is no small fry in the legal arena. He's been recognized as one of the top 10 lawyers in America by Lawyers Weekly USA, and for his efforts in consumer advocacy.

He's also championing a national campaign against lawyers who steal from their clients.

"One of the biggest problems with lawyers nationally is stealing their clients' trust accounts," he said, citing a local case, which made headlines again last month after disbarred Miami attorney Louis S. Robles pleaded not guilty to federal charges that he defrauded thousands of clients out of $13.5 million in settlement money from asbestos litigation.

Robles, who was disbarred in 2003 after a Florida Bar investigation into his financial practices, faces 41 counts of mail fraud contained in a grand jury indictment.

The Bar said he took money from his asbestos clients' trust fund accounts, using the cash for real estate purchases, personal investments and alimony payments, the indictment claims. One real estate purchase was a 9,000-square-foot waterfront mansion on Key Biscayne.

"It's outrageous," Megna said of the 18-page indictment. "He had collected more than $164 million in fees involving 75,000 settlements. As a lawyer, you hate to see another lawyer taking such advantage of people - people that need someone on their side."

The problem of trust account dipping has gotten so bad, Megna said, that most state bars have set up funds known as "lawyer thievery accounts" for when lawyers steal clients' money by writing checks out of their trust accounts.

"At the end of the year, they try and pay back these accounts from money lawyers contribute into this account," he said.

"We do have a fund like that," said Francine Walker, The Florida Bar's public information officer. The Bar's Client Security Fund is funded through annual fees paid into this fund regularly, she said, adding it is currently set up for individuals, not those involved in class action settlements. "Since its inception in 1967, the fund has distributed more than $14 million in client reparations."

Compensation for losses

The fund was created to help compensate people who have suffered loss of money or property due to misappropriation or embezzlement by an attorney, the Florida Bar's Web site states.

Megna said he would make the penalties much stiffer than they are currently.

The premise of his new book, "Lap Dancers Don't Take Checks," is ethics. He teaches seminar attendees one common theme: "Don't lie, don't cheat, don't steal - the same thing we were taught in kindergarten and first grade."

Megna says the message is very basic - and much needed in the legal profession.

"When you receive a settlement in the case, that's your clients settlement. That sits in a trust account until it is dispersed to the client."

Typically, the attorney will take out his fee of one-third plus costs. Anything more is cause for suspicion, he said.

And what is Megna's brand of justice for philandering lawyers?

"I would take their license away immediately, even if they did it one time," he said.

Disbarred Litigator Faces Life in Prison
After 41-Count Indictment, Denies Charges

By Julie Kay
Daily Business Review
New York Lawyer
May 24, 2006

MIAMI -- Louis Robles, a once-prominent Miami plaintiffs attorney, pleaded not guilty Tuesday to 41 federal counts of mail fraud and misappropriating $13.5 million in settlements from asbestos clients.

Robles, who was indicted Tuesday, was assigned Assistant Federal Public Defender Hector Flores to represent him at his initial appearance before U.S. Magistrate Judge Stephen T. Brown in Miami. Brown made the assignment after Robles said he was unable to come up with additional funds to pay his former attorney, Roy Black of Miami. It was disclosed in court that Robles already paid Black a $100,000 retainer.

Brown set his bond at $1.25 million, including a $250,000 corporate surety bond and a $1 million personal bond guaranteed by his daughter. He would only have to put up 15 percent of the corporate security bond in cash.

It was unclear at deadline Tuesday afternoon whether or when Robles would be able to post the bond.

The indictment comes almost three years after the Daily Business Review first reported that a federal grand jury was impaneled to look into the Robles case.

Robles, expecting an arrest, surprised prosecutors by surrendering to federal authorities late Monday. He was held at the Federal Detention Center in Miami.

Handcuffed to other defendants and dressed in prison garb, Robles appeared calm and in good spirits at the hearing Tuesday, smiling and greeting his public defender with a grin and a handshake.

Robles, 58, could face life in prison if convicted of all counts, according to U.S. Attorney Alex Acosta. The indictment also contains a criminal forfeiture provision seeking a judgment for $13.5 million, to be used to compensate his former clients.

U.S. District Judge Alan Gold issued orders late Monday freezing two of Robles' bank accounts and two investment accounts. Prosecutors say they do not yet know how much is in the accounts.

Assistant U.S. Attorney Chuck Duross told Brown that he is concerned about withdrawals made by Robles in the past few weeks, including $141,000 he gave to his girlfriend and $500,000 he withdrew April 6. Robles also paid Greenberg Traurig, his civil attorneys, $120,000, and Roy Black $100,000.

When Brown asked when he last worked, Robles replied Dec. 31, 2002. He answered 'no' when asked whether he owns any cars or trucks or has access to any financial assets.

Allegations

According to the indictment, Robles used client trust money to finance movie productions and waste management companies, lease apartments in New York and Los Angeles, make mortgage payments on a $15 million Key Biscayne, Fla., mansion and a Colorado condominium and pay alimony.

More than 7,000 asbestos clients, many of them old, poor and sick with asbestos disease, were victims of Robles' greed, prosecutors say. Many got no settlements or were charged exorbitant costs by Robles, prosecutors contend.

The Florida Bar disbarred Robles in 2003 after a four-year investigation prompted by client complaints. He had abruptly closed his downtown Miami law firm in 2002. The indictment caps a spectacular fall for one of country's highest-profile class action and mass tort lawyers. His firm had 12,000 clients across the country.

Just a few years ago, Robles ran ads on national television and signed up thousands of asbestos clients around the country. By 1999, his downtown Miami law firm, The Robles Law Center, had 120 employees.

Robles eventually recruited 12,000 clients nationwide, becoming one of the busiest class action and mass torts lawyers in South Florida. He handled some high-profile class action cases.

He sued residential developer Lennar Corp. after Hurricane Andrew ravaged southern Miami-Dade County in 1992, accusing the builder of shoddy construction. And he spearheaded litigation against NationsBank on behalf of Miami-Dade County Commissioner Barbara Carey-Schuler, who contended the bank engaged in racially discriminatory lending practices.

"This was one of the main firms in South Florida for dealing with class action and large injury cases," said John Ruiz, a Miami class action attorney. "They were known for having a stellar reputation and good lawyers."

Robles lived lavishly. He owned a Key Biscayne mansion, 33 acres of undeveloped land in Telluride, Colo., valued at $4.5 million and a Telluride condominium valued at $1.2 million. He had two full-time servants to care for his property, according to bankruptcy court records. His salary in 2001 was $2.7 million.

The Unraveling

Things began to unravel for Robles in 1998, when The Florida Bar started getting complaints about Robles and began an investigation. His wife, Ruth Ann, divorced him a year later. Then his partner, star litigator Ervin Gonzalez, left his firm in 2000 to join Colson Hicks Eidson in Coral Gables.

The Bar accused Robles of stealing $800,000 from a trust fund, overcharging thousands of asbestos clients costs and contingency fees of more than 50 percent without notifying them and paying many clients unusually low settlements.

Some Robles clients later told investigators they were shocked to receive bills from Robles for airfare, food, phone bills and other costs that were never disclosed to them. Robles' then-attorney, Nicholas Friedman, vigorously denied the charges and said his client simply lacked the funds to continue fighting the Bar. In November 2002, Robles abruptly closed his law firm, dismissing all his employees.

In May 2003, the Florida Supreme Court disbarred Robles. Shortly thereafter, Robles filed for bankruptcy.

Chief Miami-Dade Judge Joseph P. Farina Jr. assigned C. Thomas Tew, of Tew Cardenas in Miami, as inventory attorney and ordered him to go through thousands of case files and medical records which Robles dumped on the floor of a warehouse.

Tew, in a scathing report to the court, accused Robles of charging his clients $30 million in unreasonable or impermissible costs and $11.6 million in questionable costs.

The case apparently kicked into high gear in the past few months, under the supervision of Duross, the newly named deputy chief of major crimes in the U.S. Attorney's Office in Miami.

At the same time, the bankruptcy case has chugged along. Robles, despite all his legal woes, was still living well last year, according to bankruptcy court records. He estimated his monthly expenses at $123,000, including $60,000 in mortgage payments, $50,000 in monthly alimony payments, $1,270 in grooming and entertainment, and $6,000 in home maintenance. He put his Telluride properties in his daughter's name.

Bankruptcy trustee Drew Dillworth tried to block Robles from claiming a full homestead exemption for his waterfront Key Biscayne house. But the 3rd District Court of Appeal ruled that Robles is entitled to the exemption.

Robles sold the house last July for $12.9 million -- the third-highest amount paid for a house on the posh island.

Tew has been pressing The Florida Bar to release a $13.5 million lump sum payment from its Client Compensation Fund to compensate Robles' alleged victims, but the Bar has insisted that each client must apply individually.

Reacting to the indictment, Tew, who attended the hearing Tuesday, said: "What I really hope is this will act as a wake-up call to The Florida Bar. He has committed a decade of theft."

Flashy Lawyer Accused of Swindling His Clients
A Personal Injury Lawyer Faces Charges He Took More than
$13 Million from the Clients He Represented for Asbestos Exposure

By Jay Weaver
The Miami Herald
May 23, 2006

A victim of pulmonary fibrosis who says his lawyer never paid him his share of $16,000

Big-time lawyer Louis S. Robles could have starred in Lifestyles of the Rich & Famous -- then, poof, he was disbarred, divorced and forced to sell his Key Biscayne mansion.

On Monday afternoon, Robles' life went from bad to worse when he unexpectedly surrendered to federal authorities on charges of swindling more than $13 million from some 4,500 aging law clients ailing from asbestos exposure.

It was a calculated move on his part because the FBI was planning to arrest him early this morning at his downscale Key Biscayne apartment, following a federal grand jury indictment issued under seal this month.

Robles, 58, spent the night in the Miami Federal Detention Center and is expected to have his first appearance today in U.S. District Court. His lawyer, Roy Black, could not be reached for comment late Monday.

If convicted, the ex-lawyer could face up to 15 years in prison and would have to forfeit to the federal government whatever money he has left from the alleged theft. The U.S. Attorney's Office has already made a legal move to freeze all of his bank assets from the sale of his home -- more than $1 million.

Robles, once dubbed the ''king of torts'' for his high-flying personal-injury practice, came under scrutiny of federal prosecutors in 2003 after the Florida Bar found he had committed serious wrongdoing. Among his violations: pilfering his clients' damage settlements and orchestrating a Ponzi scheme in which he used new settlements to pay part of the old ones. He also overbilled fees and expenses to those clients.

The Florida Supreme Court then yanked his law license.

An indictment returned May 11 by a Miami federal grand jury alleges that after Robles reached settlements with various asbestos manufacturers, he would deposit the payouts in his trust account and then steal them, instead of mailing them to his clients as promised. The indictment charges Robles with 40 counts of mail and wire fraud.

Prosecutors say there were more than 4,000 asbestos clients victimized by Robles from 1992 until 2002. They are scattered from South Florida to the Midwest and West Coast.

Among the alleged victims: Jerry Fredrickson of Wisconsin, a commercial carpenter who was forced to retire in 1990 because of longtime exposure to asbestos, a fireproofing material that causes lung disease. After a medical diagnosis five years later, he asked Robles to represent him in a lawsuit.

Despite several attempts to reach the lawyer, Fredrickson said he never actually talked with Robles, even after reaching settlements totaling $16,000 with several asbestos manufacturers. He was supposed to get two-thirds and Robles one-third of the payout.

Fredrickson, who suffers from pulmonary fibrosis and other ailments, said he was thrilled that justice had finally caught up with Robles.

''I hope he's going to get plenty of time for taking money from all his clients,'' Fredrickson, 70, said in a phone interview Monday. ``I hope they throw the key away so he's never released.''

Fredrickson and the other asbestos clients who claim they were wronged by Robles might be able to recover some of their settlements through the federal criminal prosecution if Robles is convicted and then required to pay restitution at his sentencing.

But it's unclear how much money the once-flashy lawyer has available.

He sold his Key Biscayne waterfront mansion for $12.9 million in 2005, but he owed heavy mortgages on the property.

He might have more than $1 million left in the bank. He also owed $3.5 million to his ex-wife in a 2000 divorce settlement, though she has not received any money.

Robles shut down his legal empire in October 2002 because, he said, he could no longer carry the long-term costs of handling more than 10,000 asbestos, pharmaceutical, breast-implant and other personal-injury cases.

Several of the asbestos manufacturers, burdened with lawsuits nationwide, have filed for bankruptcy.

Ex-lawyer's Files Detail Theft, Civil Report Says

A Disbarred Miami Attorney Faces Fresh Malpractice
Allegations in a New Civil Report on His Firm's Meltdown.
Meanwhile, a Federal Grand Jury Weighs Criminal Charges

By Jay Weaver
Miami Herald
November 25, 2003

A disbarred lawyer who once was one of Miami's top personal-injury attorneys tried ''to mask his theft'' of $13.5 million from thousands of asbestos clients by charging millions in ''questionable'' expenses, according to a civil report filed in Miami-Dade Circuit Court.

Former attorney Louis S. Robles, 56, who abruptly closed his office a year ago, left behind computer records that have allowed a court-appointed lawyer to sort out the settlement payments owed to former clients and the expenses billed to them.

Robles also left behind a mountain of case files -- along with some 40,000 client X-rays -- in ''total disarray'' at a warehouse, said Thomas Tew, the court-appointed lawyer, on Monday.

Tew and his legal team have granted access to those records to federal investigators, who have convened a grand jury to determine whether Robles may have committed a crime for allegedly withholding settlements from clients and overcharging them for expenses, according to the report.

Tew declined to comment on the U.S. attorney's probe. But fees requested by Tew for his role as inventory attorney show that he has shared records with federal authorities:

•• ``Review [of] records and systems with assistant U.S. attorney and FBI agents.''

•• ``Calls from and calls to the assistant U.S. attorney regarding interviews and grand jury subpoenas.''

•• ``Call to AUSA and conference with counsel for Robles regarding response to grand jury subpoenas.''

A spokesman for the U.S. attorney's office, Matthew Dates, declined comment.

Robles' criminal attorney, Roy Black, did not return a call to his office. Nor did Robles' civil lawyer, Alan Dimond, a past president of the Florida Bar Association.

Civil lawyer William Huggett, who also represents Robles, said he could not comment on the report, because he had not read it.

ASSIGNED TO CASE

Tew was assigned to get a handle on Robles' cases after the so-called ''king of torts'' shut down his business. That decision came after a Florida Bar complaint alleged that he overcharged his asbestos clients and misappropriated about $803,000 from about 300 of them. The Florida Bar took away his license in May.

Tew said the Bar's investigation was a ''snapshot'' of Robles' misconduct, alleging in his report that Robles retroactively billed a total of $12.1 million for computer-related costs and another $6.15 million for interest on the firm's out-of-pocket expenses.

Tew said the computer costs were posted October 2002 but were made retroactive to 1989, according to the Robles firm's own records. That, in turn, boosted the total interest Robles charged clients for his firm's expenses.

Tew's civil report, filed Monday with Miami-Dade Circuit Judge Joseph Farina, paints a critical picture of Robles' legal empire, which once included more than 7,000 asbestos clients and 8,000 clients with breast-implant, pharmaceutical and other personal-injury suits.

If the judge approves Tew's report, it would lay the groundwork for how he and other lawyers proceed with Robles' former cases.

Tew -- aided by a legal forensic team, including his lawyer-brother, Jeffrey, and lawyer-accountant Marta Alfonso -- had to reorganize all of the Robles firm's case files, X-rays and other client records to reassign them to other firms.

His firm, Tew Cardenas, with permission from clients, took over about half the asbestos cases.

''A lot of people are fed up with the system,'' Tew said. ``They've given up hope. I'm trying to keep the cases alive.''

Tew said he wants to file a class-action case on behalf of Robles' former clients, alleging malpractice, cost overcharges and unpaid settlements.

PERSONAL STORY

One of Robles' asbestos clients, Tom Frazier of Hollywood, said he has signed up with Tew's firm to recover unpaid and future settlements. Frazier, 65, who lives in a warehouse on Social Security, said he's still stung by Robles' alleged theft.

'Why take all these customers' money due to them and run away with it?'' Frazier said. ``That's not right. I hope they put him away for a while.''

Robles, meanwhile, is waiting out his legal troubles at his Key Biscayne mansion, which he tried to sell at auction in March but got no bids. He has had it on the market for as much as $15 million.

He also owes his ex-wife, Ruth Ann, $3.5 million from their divorce settlement.

Said her attorney, Andy Leinoff: ``He is not paying her a dime.''

New Lawyer Says 'King of Torts' May Have Kept Money

By Jay Weaver
Miami Herald
April 18, 2003

Tom Frazier says his lungs are so bad that he feels like he's having a heart attack when he leans over to tie his shoes.

The reason: asbestos damage from decades of crafting particle-board cabinets.

In 1999, the 64-year-old Hollywood man turned to high-profile attorney Louis Robles to sue asbestos manufacturers -- and won several settlements. But Frazier said he never saw a cent.

He was not alone. Robles, known as Miami's ''King of Torts,'' represented more than 7,000 asbestos victims across the nation, and he may have kept as much as $13.5 million in settlements owed to them, according to court documents and Robles' business records.

''I'm the one who's suffering; he's not suffering,'' said Frazier, who lives in a warehouse and collects scrap metal and Social Security to make ends meet. Robles, he noted, resides in a Key Biscayne waterfront mansion recently listed for $7.5 million.

Robles' law firm is out of business, and a state judge has appointed Miami attorney Thomas Tew to take over thousands of his open asbestos cases.

''It's a sad day in the legal process for these [asbestos] victims,'' said Tew, whose legal team, including brother Jeffrey Tew and accountant Marta Alfonso, has worked nonstop on the case since February. ``The bottom line is, the legal process has ended up costing these people years out of their lives.''

It will cost Robles, 55, his law license.

Two months ago, the Florida Supreme Court issued an emergency suspension of Robles after the Florida Bar accused him of ''misappropriating'' at least $800,000 from about 300 asbestos clients in 2001 and overbilling them by potentially millions of dollars.

The Bar's charges were based on only a portion of Robles' client accounts. Tew's legal team examined the Robles firm's computer records of 7,085 asbestos clients from 1989 to 2002. During that period, the law firm collected a total of $198.5 million in settlements.

Tew found that Robles paid out more than $81 million to some clients -- mostly before many of the asbestos companies filed for bankruptcy protection in the mid-1990s.

In addition, Robles' firm took another $104 million from settlements for attorney fees and legal expenses, such as court costs, medical exams and expert witnesses. That left $13.5 million, which was supposed to be dispersed to ailing clients, Tew said.

`HONEST MISTAKES'

Robles' civil attorney, Nicholas Friedman, said the suspended lawyer did not want to comment. In the past, Friedman said Robles has made ''some honest mistakes,'' but he never ripped off his clients' settlements.

Friedman said Robles' law firm ran into trouble covering its legal costs in recent years because of the asbestos industry's bankruptcies. So Robles used settlement money for his expenses, which he was entitled to do, Friedman said.

He said the Robles firm's total fees and charges never exceeded half of the settlements collected from asbestos companies, which he added is consistent with the national average among personal-injury lawyers.

Tew said his computer analysis called into question Friedman's claim. Tew said Robles' firm kept at least 60 percent of all collected settlements during the past decade to cover legal costs.

In February, the Florida Bar told the Supreme Court that Robles, who refused to turn over some records, ''represented a clear and present danger to the public.'' The Bar cited misappropriation of funds and questionable legal charges, including an in-house computer company that billed clients for record-keeping.

Tew's team, which reviewed all of Robles' business records, was able to put a figure to the computer company's billings -- $10 million. Tew said such a charge would normally come out of a law firm's overhead budget.

Tew said that as some asbestos companies emerge from bankruptcy protection, they should be in a position to make good on part or all of the settlements owed to Robles' clients. But it is uncertain how much each one would receive.

In court papers, Tew has asked Miami-Dade Circuit Judge Joseph Farina to determine which of Robles' legal expenses and fees were acceptable.

FROZEN ASSETS

Meanwhile, the Bar has asked the Supreme Court to unfreeze the law firm's frozen assets, now totaling $145,000, so Tew can start to pay some asbestos clients. He said thousands of Robles' clients have been waiting years to see all of their settlement money.

Among them: Robert Shrote, 66, who lives in Northwest Miami-Dade County. Shrote has received $19,103 in payments from Robles' firm, but he said he's owed thousands more.

His caretaker, former wife Gloria Shrote, said he struggles to get by on his Social Security and union pension benefits.

''He's coughing something terrible,'' she said. ``Each year, it puts more wear and tear on his lungs.''

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