Source: s3://data.kl3m.ai/documents/govinfo/USCOURTS/USCOURTS-caed-2_15-cv-00523/USCOURTS-caed-2_15-cv-00523-13/pdf.json

Nature of Suit Code: 220
Nature of Suit: Foreclosure
Cause of Action: 28:1345 Foreclosure

---

1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 

9 

10 

11 

12 

13 

14 

15 

16 

17 

18 

19 

20 

21 

22 

23 

24 

25 

26 

27 

28 

1

UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT 

FOR THE EASTERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA 

NELSON LAC, 

Plaintiff, 

v. 

NATIONSTAR MORTGAGE LLC, 

DOES 1-10, 

Defendant. 

No. 2:15-cv-00523-KJM-AC (TEMP) 

ORDER TO SHOW CAUSE 

Aldon Bolanos represents plaintiff Nelson Lac in this case. The State Bar of 

California took disciplinary action against Mr. Bolanos on May 18, 2015, resulting in the 

suspension of his license to practice law for ninety days beginning on November 27, 2015. See

Opinion of May 18, 2015, In re Bolanos, No. 12-O-12167, 2015 WL 2447702, at *1 (Cal. State 

Bar. Ct. Review Dept. 2015); Supreme Court Order, In re Bolanos, No. 12-O-12167 (Oct. 28, 

2015). 

On November 30, during the period of his suspension, Mr. Lac requested an award 

of attorneys’ fees in connection with a then-recent motion for a temporary restraining order, ECF 

No. 36, and on December 7, 2016, applied ex parte for an order shortening time, ECF No. 38. 

Although some of these filings bear the typed electronic equivalent of attorney Walter 

Dauterman’s signature, all were filed using Mr. Bolanos’s CM/ECF credentials. Some are also 

Case 2:15-cv-00523-KJM-DB Document 98 Filed 06/24/16 Page 1 of 4
1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 

9 

10 

11 

12 

13 

14 

15 

16 

17 

18 

19 

20 

21 

22 

23 

24 

25 

26 

27 

28 

2

dated November 24, 2015, such that they appear to have been created before Mr. Bolanos’s 

suspension, but were filed on the docket of this case after his suspension took effect. 

On December 15, 2015, more than two weeks after his suspension took effect, the 

docket reflects that Mr. Bolanos filed a notice of his suspension, naming Mr. Dauterman as 

interim counsel. ECF No. 40. In a declaration filed on March 18, 2016, Mr. Bolanos informed 

the court in a footnote that Mr. Dauterman had “died unexpectedly at Christmastime 2015.” 

Bolanos Decl. at 2 n.1, ECF No. 56-3. On June 2, 2016, counsel for defendant Nationstar 

Mortgage LLC informed the court that Mr. Dauterman had died on December 21, 2015. See Ede 

Decl., ECF No. 88. Counsel attached a copy of Mr. Dauterman’s death certificate, which bears 

the same date. Id. Ex. A. It therefore appears Mr. Lac was not represented between December 

21, 2015 and February 25, 2016, and neither this court nor opposing counsel was aware of this 

fact until several months later. Apparently as a result of Mr. Dauterman’s death, Mr. Lac made 

no appearance at a January 13, 2016 hearing on his motion for default judgment. See Minutes, 

ECF No. 45. The motion was denied. ECF No. 46. 

In addition, the magistrate judge assigned to preside over a settlement conference 

in this case recently ordered Mr. Bolanos to show cause why he should not be sanctioned for his 

conduct during a settlement conference and settlement negotiations. ECF Nos. 87. Although the 

magistrate judge discharged the order to show cause, he was troubled by 

(1) Mr. Bolanos’s failure to promptly and meaningfully respond to 

defendant’s counsel’s settlement communications; 

(2) Mr. Bolanos’s failure to timely return the court’s telephone calls 

and keep the court apprised regarding the status of settlement 

discussions with his client; (3) Mr. Bolanos’s unapologetic, and at 

times bordering on disrespectful, tone in addressing the court 

during the June 2, 2016 telephone conference; and (4) the potential 

waste of judicial resources in preparing for, and hearing, motions 

that could have been mooted by a settlement, had Mr. Bolanos and 

his client been diligent in taking steps to finalize the potential 

settlement earlier. 

Order Discharging Order to Show Cause, ECF No. 95 (footnote omitted). 

California law forbids an attorney from practicing law during his or her 

suspension. Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code § 6117. “[T]he mere holding out by a layman or a suspended 

attorney that he is practicing or is entitled to practice law” is unauthorized. Farnham v. State Bar, 

Case 2:15-cv-00523-KJM-DB Document 98 Filed 06/24/16 Page 2 of 4
1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 

9 

10 

11 

12 

13 

14 

15 

16 

17 

18 

19 

20 

21 

22 

23 

24 

25 

26 

27 

28 

3

17 Cal. 3d 605, 612 (1976). A person also practices law by preparing legal documents and 

filings. See, e.g., In re Reynoso, 477 F.3d 1117, 1125–26 (9th Cir. 2007) (bankruptcy filings). 

The unauthorized practice of law may be punishable as a crime. See Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code 

§ 6126(b) (citing Cal. Pen. Code § 1170(h)). 

“Any court which has the power to admit attorneys to practice may also sanction 

them for unprofessional conduct.” Standing Comm. on Discipline of U.S. Dist. Court for S. Dist. 

of Cal. v. Ross, 735 F.2d 1168, 1170 (9th Cir. 1984). Each federal district court may adopt local 

rules to define the grounds for punishment. Id. (citing 28 U.S.C. § 1654). Under the Local Rules 

of this District, an attorney “shall promptly notify the Court of any disciplinary action or change 

in status in any jurisdiction that would make the attorney ineligible for membership in the Bar of 

this Court or ineligible to practice in this Court.” E.D. Cal. L.R. 184(b). If an attorney’s status 

changes under this rule, “the attorney shall forthwith be suspended from practice before this Court 

without any order of Court until becoming eligible to practice.” Id. The court may impose 

monetary sanctions on those who practice before it without authorization. Id. R. 184(c). In 

addition, a judge of this court may, after reasonable notice or an order to show cause, initiate 

proceedings for contempt or “take any other appropriate disciplinary action against the attorney” 

in the event he or she engages in conduct that warrants discipline. Id. R. 184(a). The court may 

also refer the matter to the appropriate state disciplinary body. Id. 

The Local Rules also provide that “[a]nything filed using an attorney’s name, 

login, and password will be deemed to have been signed by that attorney for all purposes . . . .” 

Id. R. 131(c). An attorney may use an electronic signature, as Mr. Bolanos and Mr. Dauterman 

did here, at least in part. See id. An electronic signature has two parts: (1) the designation “/s/ - 

[Name]” on the filing itself and (2) “the successful electronic filing of that document through use 

of the person’s login and password.” Id. R. 101 (defining “electronic signature”). An attorney 

who files a document electronically must be admitted to practice before this court. Id. R. 180(f). 

In summary, Mr. Bolanos appears to have filed documents on Mr. Lac’s behalf 

during the period of his suspension from practice. Nothing indicates Mr. Bolanos took any action 

to notify the court or opposing counsel in a timely way of Mr. Dauterman’s death, using methods 

Case 2:15-cv-00523-KJM-DB Document 98 Filed 06/24/16 Page 3 of 4
1 

2 

3 

4 

5 

6 

7 

8 

9 

10 

11 

12 

13 

14 

15 

16 

17 

18 

19 

20 

21 

22 

23 

24 

25 

26 

27 

28 

4

that would have been allowable in light of his suspension at the time. Notably, it appears Mr. Lac 

had no interim attorney after Mr. Dauterman’s death. As a result, Mr. Lac was unrepresented for 

two months, including in a hearing on a previously filed motion for default judgment. Mr. 

Bolanos’s actions after his suspension was lifted also led to the possible frustration of settlement 

efforts before Judge Newman. 

Mr. Bolanos is therefore ORDERED TO SHOW CAUSE, within twenty-eight 

days, why the court should not (1) impose monetary sanctions; (2) vacate the order granting Mr. 

Lac’s motion for attorneys’ fees and require Mr. Bolanos to repay those fees to Nationstar, ECF 

No. 61; (3) temporarily suspend Mr. Bolanos from practice before this court, for a period of sixty 

days; (4) refer this matter to the California State Bar; or (5) order some combination of all or 

some of the foregoing. 

IT IS SO ORDERED. 

DATED: June 23, 2016. 

Case 2:15-cv-00523-KJM-DB Document 98 Filed 06/24/16 Page 4 of 4