CORPUS CHRISTI — For years, Mauricio Celis has enjoyed all the trappings of a successful South Texas lawyer, from a private jet and exotic cars like Ferraris and Bentleys, to a spacious downtown office with a sweeping view of the marina.
Owner of a law firm that regularly refers high-dollar cases to the city's most powerful litigators, Celis developed a reputation as a generous player, handing out fat checks to Democratic candidates, hosting fundraisers and serving on the board of Catholic Charities of Corpus Christi.
Born in Mexico, raised in Rockport, educated in Monterrey, Mexico, and for a while apparently in the air-conditioning business, Celis seemed a South Texas version of the classic American success story.
But the story line took a bad turn on Sept. 28, when Thomas Henry, a Corpus Christi lawyer, appeared on a local television station and denounced Celis, 35, as a fraud.
"Mauricio Celis with the law firm of CGT Law Group International does not have a law license in the state of Texas nor does he have a license to practice law anywhere in the world," announced Henry in the paid TV spot.
"If you have hired this law firm, you may be entitled to a refund of all the attorneys fees paid. Contact me immediately," he said.
Celis quickly sued Henry and the TV station that ran the spot, obtaining a temporary restraining order that knocked the ad off the air. A hearing on the matter is set for Wednesday in state district court. Celis said a slander suit would follow.
"He was wrong in his statements. I have never represented myself to be a lawyer in Texas," Celis said by phone in a brief interview this week.
"I'm the general manager and chief administrator. I don't practice law. My office co-litigates cases with other firms," he said, declining to comment further.
Celis said his CGT Law Group International has working branch offices in Beverly Hills, Calif.; Phoenix; Washington, D.C.; Mexico City; and Chihuahua, Mexico. However, attempts to confirm the existence of these offices through public records were unsuccessful.
Even before Henry's public call-out, Celis was at the center of a bizarre Sept. 17 incident in which a naked 25-year-old woman ran into a Corpus Christi convenience store about 4 a.m., initially claiming she was fleeing a sexual assault.
According to police, Celis appeared in a bathrobe, flashed a sheriff's deputy badge from nearby Duval County and told officers he would take custody of the woman.
The woman and Celis told police she and others had been drinking and ended up in the hot tub at Celis' house.
"Mr. Celis then stated that (the woman) all of a sudden jumped out of the pool and ran out of the house," a police report states. The woman claimed she had been groped in the tub but didn't file a complaint.
The Nueces County Sheriff's Office is investigating whether Celis can be charged with impersonating a police officer or interfering with an investigation, a department spokeswoman said.
Celis, a Duval County reserve deputy, could not be reached for comment on the episode
Questions about his legal credentials had long circulated in South Texas. In a deposition this spring over disputed legal fees, one lawyer put it bluntly to the presiding judge.
"What we are trying to do ... is prove that CGT International is, in fact, a sham law firm operating illegally, and is nothing more than a runner ambulance-chasing referral organization that has a history of referring cases that they have solicited improperly, and sent off to other lawyers," said lawyer Ray Thomas.
Henry said he waited months for various authorities — including the State Bar of Texas and the Texas Supreme Court's committee on unauthorized practice of law — to respond to his written complaints.
In Texas, the unauthorized practice of law is a felony. It is also illegal for lawyers to share fees with non-lawyers or for non-lawyers to own an interest in a law firm, with certain narrow exceptions
In a 2006 story in the Chicago Tribune, Celis is described as the "family attorney" of the survivors of a tragic house fire, and is quoted speaking poignantly about their loss.
Until this week, his firm's Web site and stationery repeatedly identified him as an attorney, licensed to practice law variously in Mexico, California or Washington, D.C. Those references on the site were deleted after Henry's accusation aired.
Celis claims he has a law license from Mexico, and has the right to own and operate a law firm in Texas because it is affiliated with one he owns in Washington.
However, according to a heavyweight lineup of legal experts consulted by Henry, Celis should not be operating a law firm in Texas and other firms should not be accepting case referrals from him.
Among other conclusions reached by retired Texas Supreme Court Justice Craig Enoch, St. Mary's University Law Professor Michael Ariens and George W. Jones, former president of the Washington, D.C., bar association, are that Celis has no law license from any known jurisdiction — including Mexico — and should have nothing to do with the practice of law in Texas.
"Texas citizens have a strong and immediate interest in enjoining Celis and CGT from further practice in Texas," Enoch wrote in a Sept. 5 report.
The Tie In To Watts
Mikal Watts, an even bigger fish in the local legal pond, acknowledged the relationship, but downplayed it.
"It's not a major part of my business. There may have been one or two cases in the past few years," he said.
Watts is seeking the Democratic nomination for the U.S Senate and Celis donated $4,600 to that effort this year.
Watts’ law firm accepted cases that Celis’ firm farmed out. Celis also made the maximum donation allowed by federal law to Watts’ senatorial campaign.
But the event that may have sparked the whole thing? It occurred in the wee hours of the morning of September 17th. A young woman ran into a convenience store near Celis’ house dressed in her birthday suit. She first alleged that she had been sexually attacked.
Who should appear a few minutes later but Mauricio Celis, dressed in a bath robe and a deputy sheriff’s badge. Flashing the badge he told responding officers that he would take custody of the woman.
Watts with that?
Guilt by association with a known impostor. Taking campaign contributions from a known impostor.
Can anyone spell S-W-I-F-T-B-O-A-T?
Mikal Watts, and Mikal Watts trolls should realize that unless their own house is in order, they shouldn’t go casting aspersions on their senatorial race opponent. It is well-known that trial lawyers, like policemen, do not always get to associate with upstanding citizens.
Should Mikal Watts return the $4600 to Celis? No way. No more than Rich Noriega must return his $7000 donation from Bob Perry. Who gives money to your campaign, who associates himself with you does not personally reflect upon you.
That’s just common sense.
But politics is another animal.
Will John Cornyn be able to level an accusatory finger at Rick Noriega for accepting campaign donations from ultra-conservative home builder “Swiftboat Bob” Perry? Where is the sense in that? Cornyn would be playing right into Noriega’s hand.
On the other hand, will John Cornyn be able to level an accusatory finger at Mikal Watts for his association with a known impostor, and his acceptance of a campaign contribution from same?
