Santa Barbara, CA 93121
13 June 2010 | Disbarred (14 years, 10 months ago) Disbarment 07-O-11083 |
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18 December 2009 | Not eligible to practice law in CA (15 years, 4 months ago) Ordered inactive 07-O-11083 |
24 September 2009 | Not eligible to practice law in CA (15 years, 7 months ago) Ordered inactive 07-O-11083 |
1 June 2007 | Not eligible to practice law in CA (17 years, 11 months ago) Vol.inactive(tender of resign.w/charges) 07-Q-12131 |
20 September 1988 | Active (36 years, 7 months ago) |
1 January 1987 | Inactive (38 years, 4 months ago) |
5 July 1986 | Admitted to the State Bar of California (38 years, 10 months ago) |
June 13, 2010 CHRISTOPHER ALLEN ZAJIC [#123878], 56, of Santa Barbara was disbarred June 13, 2010, and was ordered to comply with rule 9.20 of the California Rules of Court. In a default proceeding, the State Bar Court found that Zajic committed five acts of misconduct while serving as a trustee for an estate, including misappropriating $300,000 in trust funds.At the time Zajic became trustee, the trust held a personal residence valued at $465,000, a $17,000 promissory note, $10,000 in a checking account and a $110,000 certificate of deposit. Zajic liquidated the CD and placed the money into the trust’s checking account, where he commingled his law firm’s income and his personal income. The bank assessed more than $1,000 in fees for more than a dozen checks written against insufficient funds.Zajic didn’t make more than 60 mortage payments on time, resulting in five foreclosure proceedings, costing $16,632 in foreclosure fees and late payments. He also didn’t rent the property, for a loss of $20,000, and withdrew funds purported to be attorney’s fees for himself, his wife and his father, who were also attorneys.When Zajic did not account for funds, he was removed as trustee and agreed to provide a formal accounting. The court required him to submit two amended reports and eventually found that none of the fees he paid to himself were earned. He owed more than $300,000 to the trust and the beneficiaries, as well as attorney fees and costs advanced by the beneficiaries.The bar court found that Zajic also submitted misleading accountings with the court with the intent of concealing his misappropriation. It found he committed five acts of misconduct — he failed to obey a court order, violated the probate code, tried to mislead a judge and committed acts of moral turpitude by making misrepresentations to the court and misappropriating client funds.In recommending Zajic’s disbarment, Judge Lucy Armendariz pointed to the misappropriation and wrote, “As (Zajic’s) conduct clearly demonstrates, no resolution short of disbarment would provide adequate protection to the public, the courts and the legal community.†|