Court: Brooks owes former lawyer $225G

A federal appeals court has ruled that former body-armor manufacturer David Brooks, convicted two years ago of a massive stock fraud, owes one of his former lawyers $225,000 in unpaid fees.

Brooks stopped paying one of his attorneys, Richard Levitt, shortly before the guilty verdict came back in September 2010 in federal court in Central Islip, according to a decision filed Tuesday in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in Manhattan.

The appeals court's decision upheld a ruling last year by U.S. District Court Judge Joanna Seybert in Central Islip.

Brooks told Levitt at the time that he was stopping payment because he had "depleted all funds available to pay for his ongoing defense," the decision said.

Levitt said in an affidavit that he told Brooks that if he was not going to be paid he would stop representing him, at which point Levitt said Brooks became "belligerent," and "hissed or spit at [Levitt] and screamed" a vulgar remark, according to the ruling.

Brooks then hired two other attorneys to represent him, the court said.

The ruling does not say how Brooks was able to hire new lawyers.

Brooks is awaiting sentencing.

In a trial that lasted eight months, Brooks was convicted of looting his former Westbury-based company, DHB Industries, of $6 million for personal expenses, and making nearly $200 million by inflating the value of his company's stock, according to federal prosecutors.

Levitt declined to comment Wednesday.

Brooks' attorney in the case, Andrew Goodman, said his client was considering an appeal.