Lawyer accused of filing class action suit at behest of litigation opponent

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Ethics Lawyer accused of filing class action suit at behest of litigation opponent

By Debra Cassens Weiss

March 11, 2024, 1:10 pm CDT

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A California lawyer has been accused of filing a class action lawsuit that had been prepared by a lawyer working for his litigation opponent and then collecting attorney fees when the case settled on terms advantageous to the opponent. (Image from Shutterstock)

A California lawyer has been accused of filing a class action lawsuit that had been prepared by a lawyer working for his litigation opponent and then collecting attorney fees when the case settled on terms advantageous to the opponent.

The State Bar of California filed a notice of disciplinary charges against California lawyer Michael Jacob Libman in a March 6 complaint, report Law360 and the Los Angeles Times.

The disciplinary charges allege that Libman was a local counsel in the class action suit ostensibly filed on behalf of name plaintiff Antwon Jones, a utility customer, against the Los Angeles Department of Water & Power. The public utility company provides electricity and water to city residents. The suit was based on billing mistakes that happened after the adoption of a new billing system.

In reality, the Jones suit was prepared by Paul Paradis, one of two lawyers hired by the city to sue PricewaterhouseCoopers, which had configured and implemented the billing system, the ethics charges allege. The $67 million settlement agreement in the Jones suit was also prepared Paradis, according to the ethics charges.

Libman was recruited as a local counsel by Paul Kiesel, the other lawyer hired to sue PricewaterhouseCoopers, the charges say. Paradis recruited an Ohio lawyer to be the lead counsel and reached an agreement for the Ohio lawyer to kick back 20% of his attorney fees to Paradis, the ethics complaint alleges. The Ohio lawyer has since died, according to Law360.

Jones wasn’t aware of the alleged collusion in his suit against the city, and neither was the judge who approved a $1.65 million fee for Libman, the suit says. In his fee request, Libman had falsely claimed to have worked on wage-and-hour class actions in the past, according to the charges.

Libman was ordered in March 2021 to forfeit his attorney fees. Libman did not obey court orders to turn over detailed time records for the case and to answer deposition questions, the ethics charges say. He was found in contempt in August 2023, ordered to pay $1,000 for each act of contempt, and ordered to pay a $700 daily fine until he complies with court orders, the ethics charges say. To date, he has not complied.

The notice of charges alleges moral turpitude, conflicts of interest and failure to obey court orders.

The Los Angeles Times called the ethics charges “the latest twist in a DWP corruption saga that largely centered on the role of the [Los Angeles] city attorney’s office and how its lawyers responded to litigation over a faulty billing system.”

The Los Angeles Department of Water & Power scandal led to guilty pleas by four people, including three city employees, the article says. Libman was not charged in the scheme, but Paradis pleaded guilty to bribery, according to a November 2021 U.S. Department of Justice press release.

Libman’s legal counsel provided a statement on his behalf to Law360.

“I am disappointed that the state bar filed charges against me in this politicized [Los Angeles Department of Water & Power] case driven by vindictive, corrupt and connected lawyers bent on railroading me because I have been exposing their corruption for the past few years,” Libman said.

“If I will get a fair trial that allows me to present all the evidence, I will be fully vindicated and the true scale of the layers of corruption further exposed,” Libman said. “I look forward to the public trial, and I invite members of the media, bench and bar to come watch.”

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