On Wednesday, April 19, 2023, the Presiding Disciplinary Judge of the Supreme Court of Arizona suspended attorney Bret J. Seltzer for participating in a felonious scheme that unjustly enriched someone by millions of dollars.

The case is entitled “In the Matter of Bret J. Seltzer,” and was brought by the State Bar with case no. 2022-9070.

In a decision and order imposing sanctions dated March 7, 2023, it was stated that the complaint of the State Bar was based on the respondent’s conviction for misprision of a felony and on alleged misrepresentations he made during the course of the disciplinary proceedings.

The Decision and Order states:

“After receiving the target letter, Mr. Seltzer retained counsel. At a “reverse proffer meeting,” federal authorities outlined their case and evidence for Mr. Seltzer and his lawyer. Days thereafter, on September II, 2019, Mr. Seltzer and his attorney attended a “proffer meeting” (also known as a “free talk meeting”) with Special Agents Neri and Palmer and Assistant United States Attorney (AUSA) Monica Edelstein.2 During the proffer meeting, Mr. Seltzer admitted that, while employed at Boomtown, he knew employees were creating fake entities that appeared to be legitimate contractors/ subcontractors in order to inflate the costs of construction and obtain funds to which Booztown was not entitled.”

The Decision and Order continues:

“He further admitted that he and another Boomtown lawyer discussed how to make the fake entities appear legitimate and came up with the idea Of virtual offices, which they then created. Mr. Seltzer and others decided to obtain a machine that created wet notary stamps for use on draw requests. Mr. Seltzer then forwarded the fraudulent “notarized” draw paperwork to obtain unearned funds for Boomtown.”

The Decision and Order further states:

“Through counsel, Mr. Seltzer self-reported his felony conviction to the State Bar of Arizona in May of 2022. His self-report letter included the following language: Boomtown employees (but not Mr. Seltzer), With Capri’s knowledge and fabricated certification of construction completion direction, documentation to submit to the property developers to induce the property developers to release the TI funds. The fraudulent paperwork listed fabricated general contractors and fabricated subcontractors purporting to certify completed paperwork, forged signatures, and false notary stamps to make the draw paperwork appear authentic. Property developers released Funds directly to Boomtown-controlled bank accounts. Mr. Seltzer knew about this conduct and knew that it was criminal conduct, but he did not ever participate personally in the misconduct.”

The State Bar requested that Mr. Seltzer receive a minimum two-year suspension, which the bar counsel characterized as a mitigated sanction from the presumptive sanction of disbarment. Mr. Seltzer, on the other hand, suggested a reprimand and probation.

According to the court, Mr. Seltzer’s misconduct caused actual harm. He actively participated in a felonious scheme that unjustly enriched someone by millions of dollars. The court added that whenever a lawyer is convicted of a felony offense, particularly one that involves dishonest conduct in the practice of law, the legal profession suffers. In lieu of this, the court decided to suspend the respondent from the practice.

The Disposition states:

“IT IS THEREFORE ORDERED that BRET J. SELTZER, Bar No. 022687, is suspended from the practice of law in Arizona for two years, effective May 6, 2023, for his conduct in violation of the Arizona Rules of Professional Conduct, as outlined in the hearing panel’s decision.”

Mr. Seltzer practices in Scottsdale, Arizona. He is licensed in Arizona with license no. 022687. His info can be found on avvo.com.

A copy of the original filing can be found here.