Lawrence Russell Webb

Lawrence Russell Webb was admitted to the California Bar 23rd December 1982, but has since been disbarred. Lawrence graduated from UC Berkeley SOL.

Lawyer Information

Name	Lawrence Russell Webb
First Admitted	23 December 1982 (42 years, 6 months ago)
Status	Disbarred
Bar Number	107404

Contact

Phone Number	310-441-0249

Schools

Law School	UC Berkeley SOL (Berkeley CA)
Undergraduate School	Santa Clara University (Santa Clara CA)

Address

Current Address	P O Box 241601 Los Angeles, CA 90024-9401
Map

History

24 December 1998	Disbarred (26 years, 6 months ago) Disbarment 98-N-02335
25 July 1998	Not eligible to practice law in CA (26 years, 11 months ago) Ordered inactive 98-N-02335
9 July 1998	Not eligible to practice law in CA (26 years, 11 months ago) Ordered inactive 98-N-02335
31 May 1998	Not eligible to practice law in CA (27 years ago) Ordered inactive 97-O-14770
12 May 1998	Disciplinary charges filed in State Bar Court 98-N-02335 (27 years, 1 month ago)
7 April 1998	Disciplinary charges filed in State Bar Court 97-O-14770 (27 years, 2 months ago)
21 March 1998	Not eligible to practice law in CA (27 years, 3 months ago) Discipline w/actual suspension 93-O-18592
8 February 1995	Disciplinary charges filed in State Bar Court 93-O-18592 (30 years, 4 months ago)
25 February 1992	Private reproval, public disclosure 90-C-13102 (33 years, 4 months ago)
13 June 1991	Conviction record transmitted to State Bar Court 90-C-13103 (34 years ago)
10 June 1991	Conviction record transmitted to State Bar Court 90-C-13102 (34 years ago)
23 December 1982	Admitted to the State Bar of California (42 years, 6 months ago)

Discipline Summaries

March 21, 1998

LAWRENCE RUSSELL WEBB [#107404], 46, of Los Angeles was suspended for two years, stayed, and placed on probation for two years, with a 90-day actual suspension, effective March 21, 1998. He was ordered to pass the MPRE and comply with rule 955.

On review, the State Bar Court found Webb culpable of gross negligence involving moral turpitude.

Webb was hired by a client to handle a personal injury matter, which he settled for $8,350. After depositing the settlement check into his client trust account, he sent the client a check for his share of the proceeds.

However, the client's check bounced and for the next 45 days, Webb's client trust account fell below the required balance.

Webb stated that he contacted the bank and was assured the check was paid, although he received no documentation to that effect.

Shortly after, his bank branch was closed as a result of the 1994 earthquake in Los Angeles.

Webb said he failed to receive proper information about his client trust account to resolve the problem and did not intentionally allow the balance of his account to fall below the required amount. During the disciplinary hearing he stipulated that he negligently administered his client trust account.

Even though Webb's misappropriation stemmed from mismanagement rather than from intentional acts, the bar court review judge found that moral turpitude was involved, as it related to Webb's breach of his fiduciary duty owed to the client.

The client was successful in obtaining a small claims court judgment against Webb, which he honored.

The review judge disagreed with the hearing department and found that Webb was candid and cooperated with the bar's investigation, which deserved significant weight in mitigation. However, the review judge did not find clear evidence of significant harm to the administration of justice.

Aggravating factors included harm to the client and, to a lesser degree, his prior private reproval for assault and battery convictions and violation of two ethical rules.

Although the hearing department had recommended a one-year stayed suspension with a one-year probation and a 30-day actual suspension, the review judge recommended a more severe sanction, stating "[b]alancing all relevant circumstances, we believe that the hearing judge's recommendation of 30 days actual suspension must be increased to 90 days."

Lawrence Webb