Suspended California lawyer has more than 1,100 pending bar complaints
A California lawyer suspended from practicing law in 2009 left behind many unhappy clients, according to the state bar.
Forty-three clients were abandoned by Orange County lawyer James Mazi Parsa without a refund of $120,000 in fees, a state bar court hearing judge found. Another 1,130 people have filed state bar complaints against Parsa, according to a press release by the State Bar of California.
The hearing judge recommended disbarment for Parsa, who was accused of accepting new clients and fees in his loan modification practice even when he knew his license was about to be suspended. The practice had about 4,500 clients and 100 employees. The California Supreme Court will make the final determination on whether to disbar him. The Los Angeles Times, the Orange County Register and Above the Law have stories.
Parsa was placed on interim suspension in 2009 as a result of his 2001 misdemeanor conviction for unlawful sexual intercourse with a 17-year-old employee. He received a two-year suspension in 2014.
Parsa maintained in a December 2014 response to the ethics charges (PDF) that the state bar took jurisdiction over his law practice and related bank accounts in October 2009. The problems, he contended, were caused when the state bar failed to explain the circumstances to Parsa’s clients and to determine whether they were owed refunds.
