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how do you file a complaint with the state bar?
Optional Information: Country relating to Question: United States State (if USA): California Already Tried: Would like to file a complaint with the state bar against an attorney that gave us bad advice on a lift of stay which resulted in the loss of our home.
Welcome! Thank you for your question.Welcome! Thank you for your question.You can file a complaint on your own. Here is the website with the form: http://www.calbar.ca.gov/Attorneys/LawyerRegulation/ComplaintForm.aspxIt is as easy as filing out the complaint form and submitting it to the bar association.Many complaints typically take up to six months to complete an investigation. In particularly complex cases, the investigation could take as long as a year. Many complaints are diverted out of the process along the way with, for example, a referral to mandatory mediation, an agreement requiring the attorney to meet certain conditions, or the attorney's participation in other programs.
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By filing a complaint, will that just slap the hand of the bankruptcy attorney if they find he misinformed us? We have called around to see if we have just cause for a lawsuit against him and found that attorneys are not want to take on a case against another attorney.
It will likely just be a hand slap, unless this is something that has been complained about in the past. Generally more serious punishment results if the attorney stole money or did some intentional bad action. Give me an idea of where the attorney is located and I will search for legal malpractice attorneys in the area.
The attorney is located in Fountain Valley, CA
We lost our home when he filed not to contest the lift of stay during our bankruptcy. He told us not to show up at the hearing that it did not matter because B of A was in second position and it was a bluff. We questioned it and reitterated that our desire was to keep our home but he told us not to worry. Our house was sold at auction without us even knowing and we were forced out within 3 months. He admitted he did not know how B of A was able to forclose.
Wow. That is unfortunate and I am sorry to hear that. It sounds like you where taking the right legal steps to try and do everything you could do. Those missteps give lawyers a bad name. We should be making sure we know what we are talking about before we advise our clients on actions to take or not to take. It is also a general rule of thumb to NEVER allow a hearing to go on without legally appearing.Here is the only attorney in the area listed as taking legal malpractice cases:http://www.lawyers.com/California/Fountain-Valley/Donald-S-Sjaarda-A-Professional-Corporation-97578-f.htmlHere is a list of attorneys in the LA area that list themselves as taking legal malpractice cases. I would suggest the highest peer review rated attorneys first:http://www.lawyers.com/Legal-Malpractice/California/Fountain-Valley/law-firms.html?N=0&r=50&sort=0&pn=4&ns=y&d=y
Thank you for your reply. As I understand attorneys not wanting to be in court against their peers, going out of the area as in Los Angeles may be the better route. Again, thank you for your advice.
The ones I sent you have listed legal malpractice as a Practice. I would expect any of those attorneys to represent you in that suit.
Experience: Over 15 years legal experience.