State Bar & Bar Associations,
Law Practice,
Ethics/Professional Responsibility
Apr. 14, 2026
Beware, attorneys - there be monsters (Part 1): Lessons from disbarment and reinstatement
From professional acclaim to disbarment, I write from experience about where I went wrong and how others can avoid it.
In the 1500s, ocean explorers believed the earth was flat, and the maps they used often contained a warning at the maps edge: "Beyond Here There Be Dragons."
It is that space beyond the practice of law where dangers exist for attorneys because conflicts of interest are ever present, along with temptations arising when competing for clients and, yes, greed.
I was disbarred by the California State Bar in 2016 after pleading guilty to tax fraud. It was quite a fall ...
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