A disbarred attorney filed a lawsuit against The Monitor, one of its reporters and the paper’s parent corporation, AIM Media Texas, over an article that reported on his disbarment.
Mark A. Cantu, a former attorney who previously filed an unsuccessful lawsuit against The Monitor, filed another petition against the paper alleging negligence in reporting on a ruling from the 13th Court of Appeals that upheld his disbarment.
The Commission for Lawyer Discipline took Cantu to court alleging he committed professional misconduct during a bankruptcy proceeding. The commission alleged that under penalty of perjury, Cantu failed to include assets and transactions in bankruptcy schedules and statements. The commission also alleged he interfered with the sale of estate assets and failed to turn over assets belonging to the estate.
“Throughout the bankruptcy proceeding, Respondent Cantu disregarded the requirements of the bankruptcy code and demonstrated a pattern of omission, obfuscation and non-compliance in violation of his obligations to the court,” the commission stated.
In the new lawsuit filed against The Monitor, Cantu claims the opinion from the 13th Court of Appeals was “intellectually dishonest,” alleging the opinion overlooked issues he raised over the bankruptcy trial.
He claims the newspaper was negligent for not contacting him and that the article published on Dec. 6, 2020, “failed to include the relevant facts.” Therefore, he claims, the public was falsely informed.
His latest suit also includes allegations of “a Machiavellian scheme to destroy” Cantu, a scheme he claims was carried out by Glen Romero, Juan Gonzalez and Ricardo Benavides — individuals identified in the suit as “attorneys on his staff.”
Cantu then blames 13th Court of Appeals Justice Gina Benavides, who is identified in the suit as Ricardo Benavides’ ex-wife, for “repeatedly” standing “in the way of such efforts” to criminally charge these individuals.
“She has repeatedly entered frivolous and legally dishonest opinions,” Cantu’s suit further alleges against the appellate court justice. “The purpose for such conduct is clear: she is attempting to protect her former husband, Ricardo Benavides, one of the parties who will likely be indicted. Furthermore, she has repeatedly refused to recuse herself from controversies involving Plaintiff.”
Criticisms of Gina Benavides didn’t end there, as Cantu’s suit further stated, “Benavides issued an opinion affirming the kangaroo jury trial disbarring him (referring to Cantu).”
Cantu previously filed a lawsuit against The Monitor in May 2015 for reporting on a Texas Supreme Court decision that found that he colluded with a juror to obtain a $3 million settlement during a personal injury trial in 2014.
District Judge Luis M. Singleterry ruled in favor of The Monitor under provisions of a state law protecting First Amendment rights. Such laws are called anti-SLAPP laws or Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation, which are meant to discourage frivolous lawsuits.
Singleterry first issued a ruling in favor of The Monitor and AIM Media in October 2017, but Cantu appealed the decision to the 13th Court of Appeals. That court dismissed his lawsuit in its entirety and remanded the case back to Singleterry.
The parties argued their case again in Singleterry’s court in August 2019, and six months later, the judge issued the final judgment which awarded $150,000 to The Monitor and AIM Media in legal fees incurred while defending itself.
