Gloria Allred Clients Begin Fraught California Bar Probe Process

California State Bar investigators are in touch with former clients of L.A. attorney Gloria Allred’s firm—famous for taking on high-profile, feminist cases—the first step of a winding, secretive attorney discipline process that has drawn legal and regulatory scrutiny in other instances.

The allegations against Allred come against the backdrop of cases against former lawyers Tom Girardi and Michael Avenatti, who have each been convicted and disbarred. Former clients in each of these cases accused their celebrity plaintiffs’ lawyers of exploiting and retraumatizing them, despite publicly presenting as champions of justice.

Criminal charges against Girardi led to revelations in 2022 that he bribed State Bar staff who dismissed hundreds of misconduct complaints against him. The fallout from Girardi spurred reform at the Bar, but California lawyers say the discipline process still isn’t equipped to handle some of its toughest cases.

Bar investigators dismiss the vast majority of complaints brought by clients without ever filing charges in State Bar Court.

Two women that were at different times represented by Allred’s firm each said they’ve been in contact with Bar investigators. The Bar didn’t confirm the investigation.

“Speaking generally, and not to any specific case, the State Bar will follow all evidence and seek discipline if warranted, as we always do,” a Bar spokesperson said in an email.

Allred said in an emailed statement that her firm hasn’t been informed by the State Bar of any investigation and that the claims come at a time where “law firms across the country are being attacked. We are proud to defend our record of protecting, asserting, and vindicating the rights of women and minorities, and we will not be deterred by unjustified accusations which seek to discredit us.”

‘Further Trauma’

In March, a story in the Wall Street Journal said Allred and lawyers at the firm use “high-pressure tactics” to force clients to settle their cases, demanding they sign NDAs and threatening them with high legal bills if they terminate the relationship before a settlement is reached.

The Journal also reported Allred’s firm routinely builds arbitration clauses into retainer agreements to prevent clients’ claims from being heard in open court, despite Allred’s public stances against forced arbitration.

The investigators, who are both women, cited the Journal’s reporting when they emailed Ashley Kostial, one of the former clients named in the article, and said they were seeking information “relating to a California attorney,” she told Bloomberg Law.

Kostial said regardless of the result of the investigation, she hopes the State Bar probe and the elevation of stories like hers will raise public scrutiny over non-disclosure agreements and deter plaintiffs’ attorneys from exerting similar pressure on their clients.

“I want people in this situation to know they can push back,” Kostial said.

“Going into mediation, having a settlement, having an NDA, doesn’t have to be further trauma for the victim,” she said.

Efrosina Angelova, who turned to the lawyer in 2021 for assistance with her criminal rape case against Hollywood star Armie Hammer, is also participating in the State Bar’s investigation, she told Bloomberg Law. Hammer has publicly denied the allegations.

Angelova said to Bloomberg Law she sought out Allred in part because of her reputation as a lawyer standing up for feminist causes. But Angelova described her experience with Allred as emotionally, verbally, and psychologically abusive.

“I expected Gloria to protect me, but instead, she hurt me,” Angelova said in a written statement. “I expected Gloria to protect me, but by the end she made me feel exploited and silenced and disempowered and taken advantage of. It was very hard for me to trust lawyers after my traumatic experience from her.”

18,000 Investigations, Few Disciplined

The Bar investigates allegations of attorney misconduct after receiving any that seem at all substantial, according to a source familiar with the investigations process.

But its investigators still quietly dismiss most potential cases.

The State Bar between July 2023 and the end of June 2024 opened more than 18,000 investigations, according to a report. The Bar that year disciplined 229 lawyers. It closed 14,919 cases with no action.

Allred’s already been the subject of at least one Bar investigation, which she confirmed in 2017, after a former client accused her of a conflict of interest as she negotiated a deal with a TV network that she was also suing on his behalf. Her State Bar profile shows the agency’s prosecutors have never filed official misconduct complaints against her in State Bar Court.

The Bar is more likely to pursue cases involving money, according to the source familiar with the investigations process. It’s also drawn scrutiny for disproportionately bringing claims against solo practitioners and lawyers at small firms, who are less insulated from regulatory scrutiny than attorneys at large firms.

“The State Bar of California cannot confirm whether it has received a complaint, or whether an investigation is underway,” a California State Bar spokesperson said in an email. “By law, disciplinary investigations are confidential, unless confidentiality is waived pursuant to the provisions of Business and Professions Code section 6086.1(b) or (c).”

“My expectation is that, if there is a complaint, the Office of Chief Trial Counsel will evaluate it fairly, without regard to Allred’s status as a celebrity lawyer, and if they decide that they can prove serious misconduct by their required standard of clear and convincing evidence, will prosecute,” said David Carr, a legal ethics lawyer who defends attorneys in State Bar proceedings.

Carr said in an email, “It would not surprise me though if we never heard about it again.”