Nicholas Abaza — Misconduct Against Richard Allison
Abaza cold-called Rich — a disabled Marine veteran on fixed income — and pitched a lawsuit before Rich even signed a contract. He misrepresented the contingency arrangement as “essentially pro bono,” claiming he’d recover fees from the other side. He never explained:
- 🔴 The arbitration clause and that it waived Rich’s jury trial rights
- 🔴 The no-contest clause risk — that losing could permanently disinherit Rich and his children
- 🔴 That a will contest (not a simple trust accounting) was being filed on his behalf
Abaza then manipulated Rich emotionally — warning him his stepmother was “fire-selling” properties and his kids’ college fund was at risk — to keep him locked into litigation Abaza knew was failing. When Rich asked to understand the fee agreement, Abaza repeatedly cancelled meetings and deflected. Rich never met him in person. Abaza later used Rich’s confidential protected home address to serve him — an address Rich never authorized.
Borunda never signed Rich’s contract. Trevino had no contract with Rich at all. Yet Abaza allowed both to pursue a $2M+ judgment against him anyway.