Local
Former Va. prof disbarred over bad business dealings
By: Bill Myers
Examiner Staff Writer
December 26, 2008
A soured romance and a soured business deal have left a former Virginia professor stripped of his law license and accused of “blatant dishonesty” and criminal conduct.
The D.C. Court of Appeals has ordered Bruce Pelkey disbarred after years of litigation involving his ex-girlfriend and a group of companies the two ran in the mid-1990s. Pelkey got Linda Cavalli to contribute about $32,000 of her own money to international companies, according to court papers. After they broke up and the couple entered extensive litigation, Pelkey denied that he’d been in business or romantically involved with her, court papers state.
He then filed numerous appeals and lawsuits. A California court ordered him to pay $300,000 to Cavalli in damages and legal fees.
“Mr. Pelkey not only was dishonest but also deceitful,” Judge Inez Smith Reid wrote in last week’s opinion. “Mr. Pelkey’s actions in attempting to suppress the truth regarding his business and personal relationships with Ms. Cavalli ... can only be described as deceitful and as a deliberate effort to mislead. ... ”
According to court papers, Pelkey originally became a lawyer in his native Arizona. He moved to Virginia to become a professor at Regent University in Virginia Beach in the mid-1990s and also obtained a D.C. law license. As a lecturer in the Soviet Union and then Russia, Pelkey headed his own international consulting group.
In the mid-1990s, the collapse of the Soviet Union left many of its former subject states open for investors. Among those who rushed to bridge the gap was former Rep. Mark Siljander of Michigan, who came to know Pelkey.
Siljander was indicted by federal officials in Missouri earlier this year and is awaiting trial on charges that he laundered money and obstructed justice in connection with an Islamic charity that allegedly served as a front for an Afghan warlord.
According to court papers, Siljander introduced Pelkey to Cavalli in the summer of 1996. Soon after, Pelkey and Cavalli became lovers and decided to go into business together. But after 2 1/2 years, the romance ended. Cavalli discovered that Pelkey had tried to erase her from the business partnerships. She sued, demanding her money back, court papers state.
Pelkey couldn’t be reached for comment.
The D.C. Court of Appeals has ordered Bruce Pelkey disbarred after years of litigation involving his ex-girlfriend and a group of companies the two ran in the mid-1990s. Pelkey got Linda Cavalli to contribute about $32,000 of her own money to international companies, according to court papers. After they broke up and the couple entered extensive litigation, Pelkey denied that he’d been in business or romantically involved with her, court papers state.
He then filed numerous appeals and lawsuits. A California court ordered him to pay $300,000 to Cavalli in damages and legal fees.
“Mr. Pelkey not only was dishonest but also deceitful,” Judge Inez Smith Reid wrote in last week’s opinion. “Mr. Pelkey’s actions in attempting to suppress the truth regarding his business and personal relationships with Ms. Cavalli ... can only be described as deceitful and as a deliberate effort to mislead. ... ”
According to court papers, Pelkey originally became a lawyer in his native Arizona. He moved to Virginia to become a professor at Regent University in Virginia Beach in the mid-1990s and also obtained a D.C. law license. As a lecturer in the Soviet Union and then Russia, Pelkey headed his own international consulting group.
In the mid-1990s, the collapse of the Soviet Union left many of its former subject states open for investors. Among those who rushed to bridge the gap was former Rep. Mark Siljander of Michigan, who came to know Pelkey.
Siljander was indicted by federal officials in Missouri earlier this year and is awaiting trial on charges that he laundered money and obstructed justice in connection with an Islamic charity that allegedly served as a front for an Afghan warlord.
According to court papers, Siljander introduced Pelkey to Cavalli in the summer of 1996. Soon after, Pelkey and Cavalli became lovers and decided to go into business together. But after 2 1/2 years, the romance ended. Cavalli discovered that Pelkey had tried to erase her from the business partnerships. She sued, demanding her money back, court papers state.
Pelkey couldn’t be reached for comment.
