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The California Supreme Court has requested that the State Bar of California speed up its efforts to identify potential conflicts of interest among potential bar leaders. This request follows the recent release of several reports detailing unethical conduct by former employees regarding Thomas Girardi, a prominent national plaintiffs’ lawyer facing federal charges in California and Illinois for allegedly taking over $18 million in funds from his firm’s clients.
The state bar is responsible for attorney oversight, yet Girardi had been the subject of 205 ethics complaints since 1982 and faced no discipline until he was disbarred in June. The latest report found that at least nine former state bar employees had connections with or received gifts from Girardi. One former bar investigator received more than $1 million in addition to free private jet flights and tickets to sporting events.
The Girardi case has put the state bar under scrutiny and prompted the adoption of various reforms. These reforms include increasing the number of staff investigating and prosecuting attorney discipline matters and eliminating elections for board of trustees positions, which are now filled by appointment.
State bar executive director Leah Wilson welcomed the more vital conflict of interest screenings, saying they will help improve public trust in the organization’s integrity. Wilson noted that the state bar is already working on similar improvements.
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In its letter, the California Supreme Court asked the state bar to amend rules for reviewing candidates for its board of trustees and its state bar court, which handles attorney discipline matters. The committees responsible for those reviews should collect information about a candidate’s financial and nonfinancial interests that might affect their bar services, require candidates to provide a list of attorneys with whom they would face a conflict of interest while serving the bar, and evaluate the responses for disqualifying information. The court also directed the state bar to expedite those changes.
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The state bar has convened a reforms committee considering potential changes to the organization’s governance and operations.
The California Supreme Court’s request for more vital conflict of interest screenings and faster reforms is a positive step towards improving the state bar’s handling of attorney discipline matters and restoring public trust in the organization. However, more work needs to be done to address the underlying issues that have led to the state bar’s failures in the past. The state bar must prioritize transparency and accountability to ensure that attorneys engaging in unethical conduct are held accountable and the public is protected from harm.
