The Florida Bar filed a formal complaint on October 16, 2023, against Attorney Maria C. Delgadillo alleging misconduct in three separate cases spanning from 2015 to 2023.
The case is entitled “The Florida Bar v. Maria C. Delgadillo.”
The complaint, filed with the Florida Supreme Court, accuses Delgadillo of violating state bar rules related to diligence, communication with clients, honesty, and fairness. It outlines three counts of misconduct related to representations of clients in civil lawsuits.
In the first count, Delgadillo is accused of failing to properly handle a civil case filed in January 2015 on behalf of Miami Auto Help, Inc. against another company. The complaint says Delgadillo did not keep her client informed about the status of the case or notify them when it was dismissed for lack of prosecution in July 2020.
Delgadillo is also accused of lying to her client, Rafael Villazon, about being unable to attend a scheduled February 2022 meeting. The complaint states Delgadillo texted Villazon that morning claiming her husband had passed away when he was still alive. This led Villazon to file a malpractice lawsuit against Delgadillo later that year.
The second count involves allegations that Delgadillo lied to a judge in February 2022 about her husband passing away to avoid a court hearing in a case involving plaintiff Peter Vujin. The complaint says an investigation found her husband was still alive at that time.
This caused the presiding judge to report Delgadillo to the bar and recuse themselves. It also led to sanctions against Delgadillo in May 2022 and October 2022 ordering her to pay thousands in attorney’s fees and costs.
The third count accuses Delgadillo of abandoning two clients, Anna and Don Juravin, in separate civil cases in March 2023. Motions filed by the clients state Delgadillo failed to appear for multiple hearings after they alleged she stopped representing them.
The complaint concludes by requesting that Delgadillo be disciplined in a manner consistent with the Rules Regulating The Florida Bar, as amended, for her alleged violations.
According to avvo.com, Ms. Delgadillo is a litigation attorney in Miami, Florida. She attended the University of Miami School of Law. She acquired her law license in Florida in 2000.
A copy of the original filing can be found here.
