A bookkeeper in Wichita has been sentenced to four years and three months in federal prison for embezzling more than $948,000 from a law firm where she worked.

Thirty-four-year-old Vicki J. Olivarez pleaded guilty Monday to two counts of writing checks and forging signatures on the checks while she worked at Pistotnik Law Offices.

In her plea, Olivarez admitted that from 2004 through 2009 she wrote numerous checks on the firm's client trust account and deposited the money into her personal accounts. She used some of the money to make payments on property she owned in Andover.

U.S. District Judge J. Thomas Marten also ordered Olivarez to forfeit $948,041 including her interest in the Andover property.

Each South Hampton Roads city has a cadre of attorneys on staff to deal with the many legal disputes that come with running a large city.

Sometimes, a case comes along that poses a potential conflict of interest, requires expertise that can't be found in-house, or just takes too much time.

In those scenarios, officials look outside the city attorney's office to hire a private law firm. That gets expensive.

Saddled with long and costly legal battles, Chesapeake and Virginia Beach have paid nearly $9 million to private law firms over the past five years - more than twice the combined amount spent by Norfolk, Portsmouth and Suffolk.

"When we go through and see how much we have spent on outside counsel, I think we can do better," said Chesapeake Councilwoman Patricia Willis, who is a lawyer.

City Attorney Ronald Hallman said Chesapeake is a "growing city and has faced a host of unique legal matters" including opposition to a planned North Carolina landfill, the Battlefield Golf Club fly ash case, and a challenge to a police test by the U.S. Justice Department. All of these cases required specific expertise and lots of time, which equals large bills.

Albany, N.Y., law firm O’Connell & Aronowitz has acquired Dorsey Law Firm in Saratoga Springs, adding 300 clients to its business.

The Dorsey firm, which now shares the O’Connell name, focuses on elder law and estate planning. The Dorsey firm has two attorneys. It will continue to be run by Matthew Dorsey, 43, the third generation to head the firm.

The two law firms announced the deal this week.

“We’ll bring a new group of clients to their business, and they’ll bring to our business a new group of specialties,” Dorsey said. “Both sides are very optimistic.

The O’Connell firm has 24 practice areas, such as health care, bankruptcy, personal injury and commercial litigation.

Terms of the deal were not disclosed.

Dorsey said he was motivated to do the deal as a way to expand the range of services he can offer to clients, a difficult task when the firm was on its own, he said.

In a statement, Jeff Sherrin, president of the O’Connell firm, said the Saratoga location will provide more convenient service for upstate clients. It will also help O’Connell better tap into that market, Sherrin said.

Dorsey said he expects a partner at O’Connell will work out of the Saratoga office a couple of days a week, with other attorneys shuttling back and forth as needed.

“It’s two different geographic areas, but there’s a lot of commonality here,” Dorsey said.

O’Connell now has 37 attorneys, including 30 at its Albany headquarters. The firm also has an office in Plattsburgh, with five attorneys.

Founded in 1982, Bryan A Lowe & Associates is a law firm based in Las Vegas, Nevada. The firm provides a wide range of services, primarily in the areas of estate planning, probate, bankruptcy, general business (corporate, partnership, and proprietorship), taxation, real estate, asset protection, and elder care.

The firm was founded on a philosophy of service that not only emphasizes quality representation in terms of experience and expertise - but places a high value on initiating appropriate actions to meet the client's legal needs and objectives. Particular stress is also placed on providing individualized service and achieving the desired results while working in a cost-effective manner.

At Bryan A Lowe & Associates, we handle a wide variety of legal cases, including the areas listed below. If you need an elder law, estate planning, corporate, tax, or probate lawyer, see the information below or contact an attorney.

    Elder Law
    Estate Planning

    Corporate and Tax Law

    Probate and Estate Administration

    Bankruptcy


http://www.bryanalowe.com/practice_areas.html

• Drunk Driving (DUII, DUI, DWI) - including underage drinking and driving, refusing a breathalyzer test, driving under the influence of drugs or alcohol, and other drug or alcohol related driving offenses
• Criminal Driving Offenses - including manslaughter, criminally negligent homicide, assault, hit & run, attempting to elude police, reckless driving and licensure issues
• Drug Crimes - including possession, delivery, and manufacturing of marijuana, cocaine, methamphetamine, heroin, designer drugs and prescription drugs
• Property Crimes - including theft, embezzlement, forgery, fraud, computer crimes and burglary
• Violent Crimes - including menacing, stalking and assault
• Stalking - including criminal offenses and civil actions