Las Vegas attorney Randolph Goldberg reinstated after time in prison

A suspended Las Vegas bankruptcy attorney who spent two years in federal prison has had his law license reinstated.

Randolph Goldberg, now 54, pleaded guilty to tax evasion in 2013, when he was sent to Taft Correctional Institution in California.

In papers filed with the Nevada Supreme Court, Goldberg’s lawyer, David Clark, pointed out that a disciplinary panel “recognizes the wrongfulness and seriousness of the misconduct resulting in the suspension” and that Goldberg “has not engaged in any further professional misconduct since his suspension.”

In a 6-1 decision last week, the high court reinstated Goldberg’s license, finding that he “satisfied his burden in seeking reinstatement by clear and convincing evidence.” Chief Justice Michael Douglas dissented but did not offer an explanation.

Asked about Goldberg’s future plans, Clark said that the man who acknowledged he concealed law practice income from the Internal Revenue Service on a 2008 tax return had been focused on “getting over this hurdle (of recovering his law license) first and is looking at his options.”

Goldberg could not be reached for comment.

About a year ago, prosecutors said he violated terms of his supervised release when he left Nevada and was charged with domestic violence after witnesses, including airport staff, reported seeing him “aggressively grabbing” his girlfriend by the shoulder, shaking her, and striking her on the left side of the head with a water bottle, “using enough force to make the ‘popping’ noise,” at an airport in Irvine, California.

As they boarded a plane to Las Vegas, Goldberg continued to “aggressively bump” into the woman, court papers stated. He was removed from the aircraft and taken into custody.

He told authorities his girlfriend was upset about him speaking with another woman and elbowed him in the face. “In return, Mr. Goldberg struck (the woman) in the side of her face with an open hand,” according to court papers.

In a March court hearing two months after his arrest, a probation officer said she was unable to track the woman down. A judge threw out the violation and ordered the removal of his home monitoring device.

Goldberg, who regularly advertised on television, was indicted in 2012 on four counts of tax evasion and five counts of structuring financial transactions to avoid paying taxes on $1.1 million. The tax evasion occurred from 2005 to 2008, according to the indictment.

In April 2013, Goldberg’s law license was suspended for a total of four years and nine months. He was required to take 12 legal education classes, pay a $5,000 fine, and have a mentor for two years.

According to the high court ruling, Goldberg also must complete 20 hours of pro bono work each year for five years, provide reports to the State Bar of Nevada, continue counseling “by either seeing a stress management counselor or a psychotherapist once per month for two years,” and pay court costs.

Contact David Ferrara at dferrara@reviewjournal.com or 702-380-1039. Follow @randompoker on Twitter.