State Bar Of California

The State Bar of California, fast running out of money, has sent layoff notices to nearly 500 employees, more than three-quarters of its work force. Most of the layoffs will become effective June 26 if a stalemate over the bar's funds is not resolved first; other layoffs are effective July 10. The agency also is on the verge of shutting down its consumer complaint hotline and will not process new cases, Executive Director Steve Nissen announced Monday.

Former Stanton Mayor Charles (Mike) Pace has been disbarred for incompetence and abandoning clients, the State Bar of California announced this week. The action, which took place Jan. 15, means that the 50-year-old Pace may no longer practice law. After five years he may apply for reinstatement, but such actions "very rarely happen," according to bar spokeswoman Kim McCready. Pace could not be reached for comment.

The state attorney general's office and the State Bar of California are looking into complaints that Dist. Atty. Michael R. Capizzi tried to blackmail a judge and violated professional conduct rules in his prosecution of Assemblyman Scott Baugh, who was charged with misreporting tens of thousands of dollars in campaign loans and contributions in 1995. Atty. Gen. Dan Lungren reportedly assigned a deputy attorney general to "evaluate and process" complaints made by Rep.

The State Bar of California has opened an investigation into whether Los Angeles County prosecutors have used the testimony of jailhouse informants known to have been unreliable, officials said Tuesday. The law requires that an attorney call only witnesses he believes are telling the truth, officials said.

Attorney Melanie Lomax, the outspoken former president of the Los Angeles Police Commission, did not violate professional legal standards by releasing confidential city legal memos to a civil rights group seeking Chief Daryl F. Gates' removal from office, an investigation by the State Bar of California has concluded. In a letter to Lomax's attorney that was released Tuesday, State Bar special investigator Sarah J. Carson said: "Based on the evidence before us, Ms.

The State Bar of California, in a rare public disclosure, said Tuesday that it is investigating an Orange County attorney who prepared numerous wills and trusts making himself the recipient of millions of dollars in cash, stock and real estate. In a departure from the organization's policy of refusing comment on such matters, State Bar President Harvey I. Saferstein said that probate lawyer James D.

The Board of Governors of the State Bar of California voted unanimously Saturday to ban local Bar associations that patronize private discriminatory clubs from participating in the Bar's annual Conference of Delegates. The board of governors, headquartered in San Francisco but meeting this month at a Los Angeles facility, sets policy for the state's 101,000 lawyers.

Of the 7,255 people who took the California State Bar Exam last July, 54.9% passed and won the right to practice law. The pass rate was 69.2% among the 5,457 people taking the exam for the first time. The pass percentage traditionally is higher among first-timers than among the total group of applicants, which includes people who repeatedly fail the exam.

Los Angeles lawyer Margaret Morrow was elected president of the State Bar of California on Friday, becoming the first woman to lead the state association's 137,000 attorneys. Morrow, 42, called her election by the Bar's board an important symbol that shows that women attorneys "are beginning to gain access to power in this profession." About 26% of the state's lawyers are women. "The playing field has shifted somewhat," said Morrow, who lives in Pasadena.