SAN FRANCISCO (Northern California Record) — Beverly Hills attorney Bob Babak Khakshooy faces possible suspension following a recently announced California State Bar Court recommendation over allegations stemming from a workers' compensation case.
The court found Khakshooy culpable in four of the eight counts of misconduct filed against him in the contested disciplinary proceeding, according to the 24-page decision issued Nov. 21 by the state bar court.
"Based on the nature and extent of culpability, as well as the applicable aggravating and mitigating circumstances, the court recommends, among other things, that [Khakshooy] be suspended for 30 days," the decision said. The court also recommended Khakshooy be placed on two years' conditional probation, attend ethics school, pass the Multistate Professional Responsibility Examination and pay all costs in the matter.
Allegations against Khakshooy included failures to perform legal services with competence, deposit client funds into a trust account, promptly pay client funds, failure to communicate and respond to client inquiries and to obey a court order.
The state bar's recommendation is pending final action by the California Supreme Court, an appeal before the state bar's review department or expiration of time at which parties can request further review within the state bar court.
Khakshooy's recommended discipline was among the dispositions filed earlier this month by the state bar court's hearing department for November.
Khakshooy was admitted to the bar in California on Jan. 2, 2003, according to his profile at the state bar website. Khakshooy had no prior discipline before the state bar, according to the decision.
Allegations against Khakshooy stemmed from a workers' compensation claim he filed on behalf of a client who suffered injuries during an automobile accident in January 2013, according to the background portion of the decision. The court found Khakshooy "repeatedly failed to perform legal services with competence," to provide an accounting to his client, to communicate and to obey a court order.
The court also dismissed with prejudice charges that Khakshooy failed to deposit client funds into a trust, promptly pay client funds and respond to client inquiries, in addition to a count of moral turpitude by misrepresentation or concealment.