Lawyers' dispute turns physical

Jailed former billionaire R. Allen Stanford has had trouble paying, and thus keeping, his attorneys, and now it appears two of them got into a physical altercation last month.

A Houston Police Department report shows that on the evening of July 10 several officers responded to a call to the office of Dick DeGuerin, a criminal defense lawyer who has since asked to be released from representing Stanford.

DeGuerin said he called police because Houston attorney Michael Sydow punched him and was trespassing and refused to leave.

But Sydow, a civil lawyer who has attempted to serve in limited capacity in Stanford's criminal case, told police that DeGuerin pushed him into a chair and bumped him with his chest.

Houston Police spokesman John Cannon confirmed that the report includes a photo of DeGuerin's chest with a red mark where DeGuerin said Sydow punched him with his fist.

Neither lawyer pressed charges.

DeGuerin said the two argued over a written statement in which Stanford allowed DeGuerin to collect his fees from an insurance policy Stanford's company carried. Exactly how Stanford will pay whoever ends up representing him is unclear, because his assets were frozen when federal regulators filed a civil fraud complaint against him, his companies, and other company executives.

DeGuerin said Sydow called him a liar. He said he then ordered Sydow out of the office and grabbed the document, at which point Sydow punched him. DeGuerin, who had a knee replacement a month before the incident, said he neither pushed nor chest bumped Sydow. He said two other men from the office intervened and corralled Sydow into an outer office while DeGuerin called police.

Sydow, who said he is serving as local counsel in the criminal case, said Friday that they were discussing DeGuerin charging a $30 million flat fee to Stanford.

Sydow said he told DeGuerin he thought it unethical to change fees mid-representation, and that riled DeGuerin.

Sydow said he stood up and DeGuerin shoved him back into a chair, grabbed the document and then claimed Sydow assaulted DeGuerin. Sydow said he never punched DeGuerin.

DeGuerin said details of this altercation are among many papers he's supplied Senior U.S. Judge David Hittner in his effort to get off the case. He said the documents show that Stanford wishes to have other attorneys, including Sydow. DeGuerin said he can't work with Sydow.

Stanford faces 21 criminal charges in an alleged $7 billion scam focusing on CDs at his offshore bank.

On July 31, a news release announced Stanford's new criminal lawyer would be Robert Luskin of Washington, D.C.

Luskin said he would enter the case only if he could be assured he would be paid.

Hittner refused to release DeGuerin from the case until another lawyer entered unconditionally.

Hittner denied Sydow's request to enter the case just to receive notices regarding whether Luskin could be paid. Luskin and Sydow went to an appeals court to remove Judge Hittner from the case but were denied.

“It's an impossible situation,” DeGuerin said.