LOS ANGELES — The State Bar Court of California recently suspended Kimberly Perry Teal, an Orangevale attorney, after she did not comply with the conditions of her October 2015 suspension for mishandling her client trust account.
According to the Nov. 28 decision, Teal was suspended for 30 days and placed on a two-year probation for mishandling the client trust account she held at Bank of America. The attorney’s client trust had a balance of $3.04 from November 2013 to January 2014, according to court documents.
On Jan. 27, 2014, Teal issued a check to herself in the amount of $1,000, causing her client's trust to fall to a negative balance of $996.96. Three days later, the attorney issued a check for $1,500 for personal storage. The check was returned due to insufficient funds.
Upon receiving her suspension for the two misconduct charges, Teal was given notice of several conditions she needed to adhere to, including taking and passing the Multistate Professional Responsibility Exam (MPRE). The attorney did not complete this task in the provided time frame and a new suspension was ordered. She will remain ineligible to practice law until she submits proof of passing the MPRE to the California State Bar.
The 59-year-old attorney was admitted to the California State Bar in 1983 after graduating from the University of the Pacific McGeorge School of Law. Teal had no record of discipline prior to the initial suspension, though she had been ruled inactive several times for not paying her bar membership fees.