To: The Honorable New Jersey Governor Jon Corzine

John “Jack” Cunningham Grievance against NEW JERSEY’S OFFICE OF ATTORNEY ETHICS

Theft of MY constitutional rights and due process under the law, by deception.

Office of the Governor
State House
P.O. Box 1
Trenton, NJ 08625

Dear Honorable Governor Jon S. Corzine,
I’m requesting that the State of New Jersey investigate my Ethics Complaints against New Jersey's Office of Attorney Ethics, their own Vice-Chairman Robert Correale, his political and legal supporters for a possible cover-up; and his Law Firm Maynard & Truland.   It’s been a five (5) year battle for me trying to receive my DUE PROCESS.  

The NEW JERSEY SUPREME COURT's Office of Attorney Ethics can not properly investigate my complaints due to a major Conflict of Interest.   They have already proven that they can not fairly judge one of their own Vice-Chairman.  Currently, there are no active court cases going on in the State of New Jersey over my Ethics Complaints against New Jersey's Office of Attorney Ethics, their Vice-Chairman Robert Correale and his Law Firm.

Vice-Chairman Robert Correale and his law Firm, Maynard & Truland were able to use their tremendous influence and power to their advantage in both a New Jersey Supreme Court Office of Attorney Ethics investigation as well as a Civil case for Legal Malpractice.   My evidence is clear about their use of their tremendous influence around the State of New Jersey. 

Former Governor James McGreevey personally thought enough about my evidence that he even supplied me with the phone number of the Director of New Jersey Supreme Court's Office of Attorney Ethics.  Governor McGreevey’s Attorney General Office also sent communications to Director Johnson asking that I receive DUE PROCESS for my ethics complaints.   Please read Governor McGreevey's letter to me at:  EVIDENCE: GOVERNOR JAMES McGREEVEY AND NEW JERSEY ATTORNEY GENERAL'S OFFICE    http://www.americans-working-together.com/attorney_ethics/id11.html

      On September 6, 2000, I hired the law firm Maynard & Truland, LLC of Morristown, NJ to represent me in a divorce case initiated by my former wife.  I was informed by the firm’s partner Joe Truland, Esq. that he had recently hired a divorce attorney.    (Custody of our two minor children was both their mother's and my concerns.)

I signed the Maynard & Truland Contract and paid the accepted $750 retainer   http://www.americans-working-together.com/attorney_ethics/id9.html .   Six days later, my $750 Retainer Check cleared my checking account.  Twenty-two (22) days later, due to the Gross Negligence of the Maynard & Truland divorce attorney Edward Busichio, I was placed in a divorce default for lack of activity on my Law Firm's part.   (My own Law Firm placed me in default, where I could actually lose custody of my two daughters.  I was extremely worried...  I'm sure most fathers or mothers would be extremely worried too!)

At the time of the default, the Sussex County Superior Court and my former-wife's attorney didn't even know I had retained a Law Firm.   My Law Firm, which had cashed my $750 retainer-check weeks earlier, failed to send out the required document to the concerned parties.    (HOWEVER  IN  A  SWORN  CERTIFICATION  TO  NEW  JERSEY'S  SUPREME  COURT  OFFICE  OF  ATTORNEY  ETHICS,  ROBERT  CORREALE,  ESQ.  STATED  THE  PROPER  DOCUMENTS  WERE  PREPARED.   THIS  LIE  WAS  SO  IMPORTANT  TO  ROBERT  CORREALE  THAT  HE  LISTED  IT  AS  HIS  HISTORY  EVENT  6.    PRESS  HERE  TO  READ  THIS  PIECE  OF  PERJURY,  ALONG  WITH  HIS  OTHER  PERJURIOUS  STATEMENTS  TO  NEW  JERSEY'S  SUPREME  COURT.)    http://www.americans-working-together.com/attorney_ethics/id3.html

During those twenty-two (22) days leading up to the default, I phoned Maynard & Truland’s divorce attorney Edward Busichio a number of times reminding him of the approaching Default Deadline.  Each call, I spoke to the Maynard & Truland office manager and I requested a return phone call.  However, no calls were returned by Maynard & Truland.   This is all well-documented in both New Jersey Supreme Court and Superior Court filed letters and documents as well as in my Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) official medical records.   http://www.americans-working-together.com/attorney_ethics/id5.html

After I was placed in Divorce Default, in spite of my letters and phone calls to Partner Joe Truland and his divorce attorney Edward Busichio, the law firm did not start work on my case until sixty-nine (69) days after I signed their contract and paid them the $750 Retainer.  The evidence of this fact is found on three different formatted Maynard & Truland Invoices.  The first work the firm billed me for was 69 days (11/14/2000) after the contract was signed, which was, believe it or not, Default Removal.   http://www.americans-working-together.com/attorney_ethics/id2.html

The default was due to the Maynard and Truland divorce attorney's negligence for not filing the necessary papers to New Jersey's Superior Court.  Why the law firm was charging me, I was not sure.  I questioned these charges (At the over-charged rate) even in my first letter to New Jersey's Supreme Court Office of Attorney Ethics.

Sometime after the Default and before the start-work-date (69 days into the contract ), the Maynard & Truland supervising partners, without my prior approval or my notification, switched my divorce case representation from their divorce attorney Edward Busichio to one of the law firm’s general practice attorney Robert Correale.    EVIDENCE:  MAYNARD & TRULAND SWITCH REPRESENTATION TO VICE-CHAIRMAN OF ATTORNEY ETHICS    http://www.americans-working-together.com/attorney_ethics/id20.html

What made this so secretive switch, so interesting is that Robert Correale was the Vice-Chairman of New Jersey’s Supreme Court Attorney Ethics.  I never did receive notice why this switch took place, so eventually through evidence, I started thinking that the switch was to use Vice-Chairman Robert Correale’s influence around the State of New Jersey, if I brought up ethics complaints against the Maynard & Truland law firm.    I was up against the reputation of a distinguished attorney and state government official, and the reputation of the New Jersey’s Supreme Court Office of Attorney Ethics. 

SOME  OF  THE  ETHICS  PROBLEMS:

New Jersey’s Supreme Court Attorney Ethics Vice-Chairman Robert Correale did the billing for Default Removal at an over-charged rate.  Although the Divorce Default was due to divorce attorney Edward Busichio’s gross negligence, the Vice-Chairman of Attorney Ethics felt that I should be charged at a $175 an hour rate.   The Maynard & Truland Contract states that the first 10 hours of attorney work was to be charged at the $150 per hour rate.   All work after the first ten hours were to be charged at the $175 rate.
     Although I brought these two billing problems to Maynard & Truland partner Joe Truland and Robert Correale’s attention in writing, Robert Correale continued to over-charge me and never removed the charges for Default Removal.   The three different formatted invoices in conjunction with the Maynard & Truland Contract are all extremely clear.  

In December 2000, I first started complaining about Maynard & Truland’s ethics problems to New Jersey’s Supreme Court Office of Attorney Ethics.    I wrote to their District X Ethics Committee that covers both Morris and Sussex Counties of New Jersey.  My letter and the evidence I attached to it, clearly highlighted the amount of pain I was under due to ongoing ethics violations.  However, I got no where, since Vice-Chairman Robert Correale was the Vice-Chairman of that same committee.   EVIDENCE: LETTER ONE TO NEW JERSEY'S OFFICE OF ATTORNEY ETHICS (CORREALE'S DISTRICT X )   http://www.americans-working-together.com/attorney_ethics/id8.html

A Conflict of Interest was never mentioned in their return letter to me.    They must have known that the Morris County New Jersey Law Firm, Maynard & Truland was the same law firm of their Vice-Chairman Robert Correale.  Two of my evidence letters that were attached to my complaint letter to District X Attorney Ethics were addressed to Robert Correale, himself.    EVIDENCE: LETTER TWO AFTER MAYNARD & TRULAND'S NEGLIGENT DEFAULT    http://www.americans-working-together.com/attorney_ethics/id6.html

One of my favorite ethics violations of Robert Correale was the day of Divorce Arbitration in Sussex County Superior Court on February 14, 2001.   Robert was a general-practice attorney and he gave me the impression that he had not served on too many divorce cases.     EVIDENCE: DIVORCE ARBITRATION STATEMENT     http://www.americans-working-together.com/attorney_ethics/id4.html
 
The last time I received DUE PROCESS from the New Jersey Court Systems was March 11, 2003.   Maynard and Truland, LLC brought me to New Jersey Superior Court for a Civil Case for refusing to pay the remainder of their open bill of $1,600.  The Law Firm served their papers for this Superior Court Civil case to me in December 2002, a few days before Christmas.     Within days, I counter-claimed on the same docket for Legal Malpractice.

Originally, the Maynard & Truland firm had a collections law firm representing them in their open bill collections case.  However, I sent the collections law firm some of my legal malpractice evidence I had against the Maynard & Truland firm.

March 11, 2003 was the court date in New Jersey Superior Court in Sussex County.   Vice-Chairman of Attorney Ethics Robert Correale, Esq. was there representing himself and his Law Firm MAYNARD & TRULAND, LLC.   The collections law firm was no longer part of the case.
       I had to represent myself PRO SE, because no attorney wanted to go against the local Vice-Chairman of Attorney Ethics without big money up front.   
      I was a nervous wreck that day, but Honorable Superior Court Judge Ronald Graves had much of my evidence before him.   My evidence is what beat Vice-Chairman Robert Correale, Esq. and his law firm.  He couldn't go against his own Law Firm's own contract, invoices, court documents; court filed letters and statements, my VA medical records, etc.  (He had supplied the court no evidence to prove me wrong.)
     After Robert Correale’s objections, Judge Graves decided that my Malpractice Counter-claim warranted the New Jersey Superior Court Law Division for damages.

That same day, in a Sussex County hallway, Robert Correale informed me that I should NOT bring my Ethics Claim through District X due to a CONFLICT OF INTEREST.  I informed him that I did not have a choice. The decision was NOT mine.     I asked Correale to please inform Trenton’s Office of Attorney Ethics about his Committee’s Conflict of Interest.
 
      Sometime after Honorable Judge Ronald Graves made his decision that my Legal Malpractice complaints warranted the Law Division for damages;  strangely the court transcript went missing within Sussex County’s Superior Court before it could be typed.    EVIDENCE: SUPERIOR COURT HONORABLE RONALD GRAVES' COURT TRANSCRIPT GOES STRANGELY-MISSING     http://www.americans-working-together.com/attorney_ethics/id18.html

Since there was no record of Superior Court Judge Graves’ Law-Division-Merit-Decision, the Maynard & Truland attorneys were able to perjure themselves verbally in open court; as well as perjure themselves in official court documents.     EVIDENCE: MAYNARD & TRULAND ATTORNEY COMMITS PERJURY IN SUPERIOR COURT    http://www.americans-working-together.com/attorney_ethics/id19.html

Serving as PRO SE, my Legal Malpractice civil case against Maynard & Truland went all the way up to New Jersey’s Appellate Division in Trenton, but was thrown out for lack of merit since Honorable Judge Graves’ decision in my favor couldn’t be used.  The transcript was still lost within Sussex County Superior Court and was never found by the court stenographer.
Also, since I could not use Honorable Superior Court Judge Ronald Graves civil court decision as an outside opinion on my Office of Attorney Ethics complaints against Correale and his Law Firm, I did not have much chance of  DUE PROCESS.  The New Jersey’s Supreme Court Director Johnson’s Office assigned the complaint case to Robert Correale’s own committee that he was Vice-Chairman of.   The Conflict of Interest was not admitted by the Office of Attorney Ethics until hundreds of my letters went out.    Both Governor  McGreevey and the New Jersey Attorney General office sent written correspondence and some of my evidence to Director Johnson.  Governor McGreevey even supplied me with Director Johnson’s direct phone line and I called him a couple of times, but Johnson never returned my phone calls.

      After hundreds of my letters, the Office of Attorney Ethics finally switched the investigation from Correale’s District X to his neighbor in District XI.
     District XI went through some minor motions.

In early May 2003, MAYNARD & TRULAND  attorneys Edward Busichio, Robert Correale (Vice-Chairman of DISTRCT X) made sworn CERTIFICATIONS to District XI, Secretary Robert Stober.  James Maynard supplied a cover letter with his own type of certifications.  For unknown reasons, Joe Truland, Esq. (defendant and junior partner) did NOT supply a CERTIFICATION to District XI.   EVIDENCE:   MAYNARD & TRULAND'S OWN CERTIFICATIONS TO NEW JERSEY'S SUPREME COURT   http://www.americans-working-together.com/attorney_ethics/id3.html

Although these Supreme Court CERTIFICATIONS were sworn to, they were vague, misleading and at times, perjurious.  None of the Maynard & Truland attorneys attached any evidence to their sworn Certifications.    Their written words were stronger than their Law Firm's own Contract and Invoices, Court filed documents, letters, statements and Federal Veterans Affairs (VA) Medical Records.   

Instead of supplying evidence to their Certifications, Vice-Chairman Robert Correale was allowed to openly mock my military PTSD disability in his Certification.   EVIDENCE:  "HIDING IN THE BACK  OF  THE  COURTROOM"     http://www.americans-working-together.com/attorney_ethics/id21.html

       On the other hand, I had sent to the District XI Ethics Committee,  Maynard & Truland’s own contract, their own invoices, my Federal Department of Veterans Affairs (VA) medical records, court filed documents, court filed statements, court filed letters, etc.   It was pretty much the same evidence that I sent the Honorable Sussex County Superior Court Judge Ronald Graves, which he determined my Legal Malpractice evidence warranted the Law Division for damages.  

 Since one of my ethics complaints is related to MAYNARD & TRULAND, LLC over-charging for the first ten hours of the CONTRACT, both District X Vice-Chairman Robert Correale and Senior Partner James Maynard addressed MAYNARD & TRULAND, LLC billing procedures.  Although both their interpretations were perjurious statements, their CERTIFICATIONS were accepted and NOT questioned by Secretary Robert Stober in spite of my sending a great deal of follow-up evidence.  However, they did supply me with needed communications. Prior to these CERTIFICATIONS, MAYNARD & TRULAND, LLC never addressed my letters of October, November and December 2000.   Also, Busichio’s CERTIFICATION was the first time I heard the reason for my DIVORCE DEFAULT was “A SURPRISE.”    EVIDENCE: CERTIFICATION OF EDWARD BUSICHIO TO NEW JERSEY ATTORNEY ETHICS     http://www.americans-working-together.com/attorney_ethics/id15.html
      A professional divorce attorney admitting the reason why I fell into Divorce Default was a surprise to him.  His law firm did not start work until sixty-nine (69) days into the Contract.  Edward Busichio, Esq. has been lucky that the general-practice attorney, who replaced him on my representation in my divorce case, was a Vice-Chairman of New Jersey’s Supreme Court of Attorney Ethics.

WHEN  VICE-CHAIRMAN  ROBERT  CORREALE  WAS TRYING  HIS  FELLOW    NEW  JERSEY  ATTORNEYS  FOR  ETHICS  VIOLATIONS...   WAS  HE  SO  LAX  WITH  FOLLOWING  SUPREME  COURT  GUIDELINES  FOR  TELLING  THE  TRUTH? 

Isn’t five years too much to ask a PTSD Disabled Vet to battle for his DUE PROCESS? 

Even in New Jersey, Deception should only go so far… 

Like I already wrote, it has been a five (5) year battle.  But I won’t give up until I get my DUE PROCESS. 

Theft of MY constitutional rights and due process under the law, by deception.

Governor Corzine, you promised to fight corruption.  Please start with the top of New Jersey’s Office of Attorney Ethics.

          Sincerely and Truthfully,

         John “Jack” Cunningham

         Email:   ProudCapMarine@earthlink.net