CA bar suspends 1,600 attorneys for violating rules set up after Girardi allegedly stole millions [View all]
More than 1,600 attorneys have been suspended by the California State Bar for violating rules about client trust accounts that were set up after disgraced L.A. attorney Thomas Girardi allegedly stole millions of dollars from his clients.
The Client Trust Account Protection Program, which went into effect last year, requires attorneys to register their client trust accounts annually with the state bar, complete a yearly self-assessment of their practices managing client trust accounts and certify with the state bar that they comply and understand the requirements for safekeeping funds.
After the reporting component is fulfilled, the state bar will then begin compliance reviews and investigative audits when appropriate.
Originally, more than 1,700 attorneys were found in violation of the rules and enrolled as inactive with the bar, meaning theyre not legally allowed to practice law. As of Thursday afternoon, that number has dropped to 1,641 after some of the attorneys fulfilled their requirements, according to Special Counsel Steven Moawad, who works for the bars attorney discipline system.
https://www.latimes.com/california/story/2023-07-28/california-bar-suspends-nearly-1-600-attorneys-for-violating-rules-set-up-after-tom-girardi-scandal