Elva Funes Nivala was first admitted to the California Bar 17th June 1987, but is now no longer eligible to practice. Elva graduated from Loyola Law School.
Lawyer Information
| Name | Elva Funes Nivala |
|---|---|
| First Admitted | 17 June 1987 (37 years, 11 months ago) |
| Status | Not Eligible to Practice |
| Bar Number | 128177 |
Contact
| Current Email | [email protected] |
|---|---|
| Phone Number | 786-973-8778 |
| Fax Number | 786-973-8778 |
Schools
| Law School | Loyola Law School (Los Angeles CA) |
|---|---|
| Undergraduate School | California St University Long Beach (CA) |
Address
| Current Address | 9321 SW 166th Ct Miami, FL 33196-1021 |
|---|---|
| Map |
History
| 1 July 2023 | Not eligible to practice law in CA (1 year, 10 months ago) Suspended, failed to pay fees |
|---|---|
| 12 June 2003 | Inactive (21 years, 11 months ago) |
| 14 June 2001 | Not eligible to practice law in CA (23 years, 11 months ago) Discipline w/actual suspension 95-O-16626 |
| 1 September 1997 | Inactive (27 years, 8 months ago) |
| 17 June 1987 | Admitted to the State Bar of California (37 years, 11 months ago) |
Discipline Summaries
June 14, 2001 ELVA GONZALEZ-FUNES [#128177], 44, of Miami was suspended for one year, stayed, and was placed on two years of probation with a nine-month actual suspension and until she makes restitution and presents a physician’s opinion that she is fit to practice law. She also was ordered to take the MPRE and comply with rule 955. If the actual suspension exceeds two years, she must prove her rehabilitation. The order took effect June 14, 2001. Gonzalez-Funes stipulated to three counts of misconduct in three consolidated cases.In the first, she wrote nine checks totaling $21,000 against insufficient funds in her client trust account.In the second matter, she settled a personal injury case and informed her clients they each would receive $1,185 from the settlement. Through inadvertence, checks totaling $6,670 were never deposited in Gonzalez-Funes’ trust account. Nonetheless, she wrote four checks totaling that amount.Two of the checks, one for a doctor and the other Gonzalez-Funes’ fee, were endorsed over to another party for cash. The other two, for the clients, were less than the amount they were promised and they refused to accept them.Gonzalez-Funes stipulated that she failed to ensure the drafts were deposited in a client trust account and failed to adequately supervise the payment of client funds.After settling another personal injury matter, she was to keep $2,500 in her client trust account to pay medical providers, but allowed the balance to fall below that amount. Despite the client’s requests, Gonzalez-Funes did not provide him with his file or with a copy of any check disbursing funds to the doctors.Instead, she told the client the doctors had been paid. As in the previous case, two checks written to medical providers were endorsed over to another party for cash. Gonzalez-Funes also told the client he had to pay $50 for his file.She stipulated that she did not maintain settlement funds in a trust account and did not adequately oversee the payment of those funds to lienholders.In mitigation, Gonzalez-Funes suffered extreme physical disabilities, making her unable to attend to the daily requirements of her practice. She eventually closed her practice and moved out of state. |