Florida Bar Files Complaint Against Attorney Theodore Mark Cooperstein for Lying About COVID-19 Vaccination Status

On Thursday, April 25, 2024, The Florida Bar filed a formal complaint for reciprocal discipline against attorney Theodore Mark Cooperstein with the Supreme Court of Florida.

The case is entitled “The Florida Bar v. Theodore Mark Cooperstein,” with case number 2023-00,005(2B).

The complaint stems from discipline Cooperstein previously received in Mississippi for making false statements to a federal court judge regarding his COVID-19 vaccination status. According to the complaint, on three separate occasions in 2021, Cooperstein told a judge in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi that he was vaccinated against COVID-19 when asked, but later admitted he was not vaccinated.

An investigation by the Department of Justice’s Office of Professional Responsibility found that Cooperstein’s representations to the court about his vaccination status were intentionally false. The investigation also determined that Cooperstein violated the court’s rules requiring face masks in common areas of the courthouse by not wearing a mask.

Based on these findings, the United States District Court for the Southern District of Mississippi sanctioned Cooperstein in July 2022, ordering him to pay $6,000 to support a law school professionalism program. In August 2023, the Supreme Court of Mississippi then privately reprimanded Cooperstein for violating Mississippi’s professional conduct rules regarding dishonesty and misconduct.

The Florida Bar is now asking the Supreme Court of Florida to impose reciprocal discipline on Cooperstein based on the action taken against him in Mississippi, where he is also licensed to practice law. As a member of the Florida Bar since 2012, Cooperstein is subject to the jurisdiction of Florida’s highest court.

The petition states:

“WHEREFORE, The Florida Bar prays respondent will be appropriately disciplined in accordance with the provisions of the Rules Regulating The Florida Bar as amended.”

According to avvo.com, Mr. Cooperstein is an appeals attorney in Madison, Mississippi. He attended the Stanford Law School, graduating in 1987. He acquired his law license in Florida in 2012.

A copy of the original filing can be found here.