In re Goberdhan
Diana Maxfield Kearse, Brooklyn (Colette Landers of counsel), for petitioner.
Per Curiam.
On January 10, 2011, the respondent pleaded guilty in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, before the Honorable Shira A. Sheindlin, to (1) conspiracy to commit bank fraud and wire fraud, in violation of
As revealed in the indictment and plea minutes, the respondent‘s convictions were based on his role in a mortgage fraud scheme, which lasted from 2005 through October 2007. The conspiracy count alleged that the respondent, together with others, prepared and submitted applications and documentation for home mortgage loans containing false and misleading information in order to induce lenders to make loans, totaling over $23 million, to persons to whom, and under terms which, the lenders would not have made. The respondent admitted during his plea allocution that, as the closing attorney, he had the lender banks wire the proceeds to his IOLA account, and then distributed the funds to other members of the conspiracy. He further admitted that he knew that the funds received were based on false representations and he knew that what he did was wrong. The remaining substantive counts alleged the same with respect to specific transactions. For instance, count 2 charges bank fraud with regard to a property located at 126-38 145th Street in Jamaica. The respondent allegedly participated in a scheme to defraud Fremont Investment and Loan Company by taking home mortgage loans totaling approximately $460,000 through the use of false statements. The respondent admitted that, as the closing attorney, he had the lender wire the funds to his IOLA account, and pursuant to the scheme, he would distribute the funds to the other members of the conspiracy. Similarly, the respondent admitted that he knew that the funds received were based on false representations and that he knew what he did was wrong.
As stated by the Court of Appeals in Matter of Margiotta (60 NY2d 147, 150 [1983]):
“The Judiciary Law provides for automatic disbar
ment when an attorney is convicted of a felony. Under this section, an offense committed in any other State, district or territory of the United States where it is classified as a felony is determined to be a felony when it ‘would constitute a felony in this state.’ ( Judiciary Law, § 90, subd 4, par e. ) For purposes of this determination, the felony in the other jurisdiction need not be a mirror image of the New York felony, precisely corresponding in every detail, but it must have essential similarity.”
The federal felony of bank fraud has been held to be essentially similar to the New York felonies of grand larceny in the second degree, in violation of
Although personally served with a copy of this motion, the respondent has neither submitted a response nor requested additional time in which to submit a response.
By virtue of his federal felony convictions, the respondent was automatically disbarred and ceased to be an attorney, pursuant to
Accordingly, the motion to strike the respondent‘s name from the roll of attorneys, pursuant to
Prudenti, P.J., Mastro, Rivera, Skelos and Austin, JJ., concur.
Ordered that pursuant to
Ordered that the respondent, Cheddi B. Goberdhan, admitted as Cheddi Bassant Goberdhan, shall comply with this Court‘s rules governing the conduct of disbarred, suspended, and resigned attorneys (see
Ordered that pursuant to
Ordered that if the respondent, Cheddi B. Goberdhan, admitted as Cheddi Bassant Goberdhan, has been issued a secure pass by the Office of Court Administration, it shall be returned forthwith to the issuing agency and the respondent shall certify to the same in his affidavit of compliance pursuant to