News Releases

State Bar Enters Settlement Agreement with Los Angeles Times in California Supreme Court Case

The State Bar of California and the Los Angeles Times have entered into a settlement agreement in the matter of Los Angeles Times Communications v. State Bar of California (Girardi) that is pending before the California Supreme Court. Under the agreement’s terms, the parties will jointly request that the Court dismiss the petition, which the Los Angeles Times filed in June 2021, seeking access to information pertaining to closed disciplinary cases against now-disbarred attorney Thomas V. Girardi.   

“We are pleased to announce this agreement, which we believe to be a fair and reasonable resolution of the dispute between the parties,” said Ellin Davtyan, State Bar General Counsel. “This agreement reflects the State Bar’s evolved interpretation of the statute governing the discretionary release of confidential disciplinary case information, as well as the State Bar’s commitment to transparency and accountability.” 

As part of the agreement, the State Bar agreed to pay $138,000, a portion of the Times’s attorneys’ fees, and to publicly release two additional names that were anonymized in the May report if the individuals (former employees of the State Bar) consent to the disclosure. The State Bar also agreed to initiate a rule-making process to modify its rules to reflect the previously announced change in its interpretation of California Business and Professions Code section 6086(1)(b)(2). The rulemaking will be subject to the usual process of public comment and review and approval by the Board.

See a copy of the settlement agreement.