Friday, May 13, 2011
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State Bar Initiates Disciplinary Proceedings Against ‘ Tax Lady’
By a MetNews Staff Writer
The State Bar of California yesterday announced that it has initiated disciplinary proceedings against Sacramento-area attorney Roni Deutch, well known through her national television and radio ads billing herself as the “Tax Lady.”
Although the State Bar is typically prohibited from acknowledging pending investigations, Chief Trial Counsel James Towery said, Deutch waived confidentiality by announcing at a press conference in Sacramento earlier in the day that she is bankrupt and will surrender her license to practice law.
Towrey said that Deutch had been under investigation “for some time,” and remarked, should she stop practicing law, “this will help protect the public.”
A spokesperson for the agency said the State Bar is in the process of preparing a petition to place Deutch on inactive status pending the outcome of the formal disciplinary proceeding.
Deutch is also facing a lawsuit filed last August by then-Attorney General Jerry Brown, which accused her of swindling money from thousands of individuals seeking to resolve IRS collection problems.
Deutch was held in contempt of court last month for defying an order requiring preservation of documents and violating a preliminary injunction compelling her to issue some $435,000 in refunds to her clients.
Copyright 2011, Metropolitan News Company