Practice Areas: Professional Liability; view more
Licensed in California since: 1990
Education: Southwestern Law School
Selected to Super Lawyers: 2022 - 2024 Call today:
626-314-9050
Erin Joyce Law, PC
117 E Colorado BlvdSuite 465
Pasadena, CA 91105 Visit website
Details
Erin Joyce spent over 18 years as a State Bar prosecutor. She has extensive experience in State Bar investigations and disciplinary proceedings, as well as more than 25 years of civil litigation practice. Erin focuses her practice on ethics consultations, State Bar defense and moral character determinations.
Erin was admitted to the Bar in 1990 and practiced for nearly eight years in an intellectual property boutique firm before joining the Office of Chief Trial Counsel as a prosecutor for the State Bar, from 1997 through 2016. Erin has almost 20 years of experience handling all aspects of discipline cases against attorneys in State Bar Court, from the filing of the complaint through trial and review. She has personally tried dozens of State Bar trials and several appeals. Erin has a comprehensive understanding of how State Bar investigations and proceedings unfold.
Practice areas
Professional Liability: Plaintiff, Professional Liability: DefenseFocus areas
Ethics & Professional Responsibility, Legal Malpractice
- 50% Professional Liability: Plaintiff
- 50% Professional Liability: Defense
First Admitted: 1990, California
Professional Webpage: https://erinjoycelaw.com/about-us/
Scholarly Lectures/Writings:
- American Bar Association Live Webinar: "The Ultimate Playbook: Building Your Business Without Breaking Ethics Rules" -- November 2021
- CAALA / Advocate “How to Avoid a State Bar Complaint: Put the Clients Interests Ahead of Your Own and Return Phone Calls” – December 2019 Edition Zealous Advocacy During the Pandemic / Practicing Law In Interesting Times - April 2020 Pitfalls to Avoid with Litigation Funding – January 2021 Pitfalls to avoid with litigation funding: Whether A Third-Party Loan Is Made Directly to The Client or The Attorney Borrows The Money, There Are Ethical Pitfalls – March 2021; CAALA: “Ethics Do’s and Don’ts for Lawyer Marketing and Advertising in 2020” – March 2021
- California Lawyer Association: “Pitfalls for the Unwary: How Changes in the Rules of Professional Conduct Can Expose You to Serious Liability” – July 2021 “How Judges Affect Attorney Wellbeing” – August 2021; “How Judicial Officers Can Assist in the Creation of Mental health in Attorneys While Supporting and Aiding the Delivery of Justice,” By Erin Joyce, the Hon. Kevin Rosenberg, and Carolin Shining – July 2021
- CAALA - Las Vegas: "How to Keep Your Client's Money Safe and Your License Safe, All at the Same Time" -- July 2021; “The Basics of How to Manage Your Trust Account to Avoid Discipline” – September 2021
- The State Bar’s Attack on Lawyers: Big Tech Takeover and How Paraprofessionals Will Affect Your Practice – June 2021
- Outside Counsel Network: “Bankruptcy & COVID-19: BASICS & Ethical Considerations” – April 2020; "The Ethics of Legal Marketing" -- June 2020; "Life and Practice of Law After Covid 19" -- July 2020; "How Client Entanglements Can Jeopardize Your License" -- August 2020; "The Intersection of Attorney Ethics, Mental Health and the Covid Pandemic" -- October 2020; "The Ethics of Referrals" -- November 2020, March 2021; “How Law Firms Can Thrive in These Turbulent Times” – May 2021
- Mediation Ethics – May 2021
- Special Ethics Issues for Trusts and Estates Attorneys – April 2021
- Italian American Lawyers Association: "Ethics of Alternative Billing" – April 2021
- Contemporary Ethical Issues – February 2021
- How to Avoid a State Bar Complaint – February 2021
- "What You Don’t Know About Trust Accounts Can Get You Disbarred" – January 2020, April 2020, January 2021
- LACBA Ethics Symposium Program Speaker: “What You Don’t Know About Trust Accounting Can Get You Disbarred" -- January 2020, April 2020, January 2021
- Program Speaker on “Trials During COVID” for CAALA, December 2020
- MCLE: “How to Pivot Your Practice: The Importance of Competence, Mentorship, & Effective Communication” – November 2020; “Thriving in Volatile Times and Growing Your Practice” – November 2020
- Closing Argument - November 2020
- PLI Program: “Starting and Building Your Law Practice in a Pandemic World” – August 2020
- What to do With Your Law Firm Amidst the Pandemic – August 2020
- The Layer Assistance Program “Wellness Strategies for the Legal Community” – May 2020
- Los Angeles County Counsel: Program Speaker on “Ethics for the Government Lawyer” -- February 2020
- The Ethics of Networking – February 2020
- The State Bar’s Proposal to Allow Non-Attorney Practice of Law – December 2019, January 2020
- How to Avoid a State Bar Complaint – December 2019, February 2021
- Discipline Roundtable: Ethical Quandaries to Ponder – July 2019
- Program Speaker on “New Rules of Professional Conduct,” Los Angeles County Bar Association, January 31, 2019
- Program Speaker on “New Rules for the Small Firm Practitioner,” Eastern Bar Association, January 17, 2019
- LACBA: “Significant Rule Changes that Impact the Small Firm or Solo Practitioner” – December 2018
- Program Speaker on "Avoiding the State Bar Discipline System,” State Bar of California’s Solo and Small Firm Summit, June 2012, June 2020
- Valley Lawyer Flat Fees: Follow the Rules, No Problem (Reprint from Attorney at Law Magazine, Vol.7., No. 1) – June 2021
- Pasadena Magazine Attorney of Distinction – March 2021
- Los Angeles Lawyer (LAL) Magazine Tales Of Civility in Times of Pandemic “Practice Tips” – May 2020 “Tales of Civility in the Time of Pandemic,” Los Angeles Lawyer Magazine, October 2020 “Letter” - Thank you for your contribution to Los Angeles Lawyer / Susan Petit, Editor-In-Chief – October 2020 The Time Has Come for a State Bar Expungement Procedure – July 2021 Closing Argument – July/August 2021
- LACBA LACBA Update “The Perils of Flat Fee Agreements Under the New Rules of Professional Conduct,” – September 2019; "What You Don’t Know About Trust Accounting Can Get You Disbarred" – May 2020; "The Time for a State Bar Expungement Procedure Has Come" – July 2021
- Daily Journal Newspaper “Bar Proposals will Upend the Legal Profession,” Los Angeles Daily Journal, October 2, 2019; "State Bar Issues Draft Rules for Temporary Licensure Program" – September 2020; "Auditor Criticizes Bar’s Discipline System but Says Exam Was Successful" QUOTED – April 2021; LA County Bar: "Others Oppose Paraprofessionals in Court" – April 2021; "Don’t Live in Tech Ethics Peril –Ethics Reforms Need Your Attention Now" – July 2021; "Problems with the Paraprofessional Program" -- October 2021 (Co-authored with Raquel Greenberg)
- COVID Articles "Legal Ethics And The Coronavirus" – March 2020; "Legal Ethics and Risk Management in the Time of Pandemic" – March 2020; "Tales Of Civility in Times of Pandemic" – April 2020; "Tales From the Pandemic: The Best of Time/The Worst of Times” – April 2020
- CLA-The Practitioner/SOLO MCLE Article: “The Buck Stops Here” CLA Practitioner - (Vol. 26, Is. No. 3) - Summer 2020; "The Dangers of Alternative Payment Sources" – June 2021; "Don’t Be Tempted by the Fruit of the Alternative Payment App Tree!" – July 2021
- California Lawyers AssociationHow Judicial Officers Can Assist in the Creation of Mental Health of Attorneys While Supporting and Aiding The Delivery of Justice By Erin Joyce, the Hon. Kevin Rosenberg and Carolin Shining - July 2021
- Bloomberg Law Magazine: "Third of California Online Bar Exams Cited for Possible Cheating" – December 2020
- Attorney At Law Magazine “Practicing Law in Interesting Times” California Lawyers Association, (Vol. 6, No. 2) – May 2020; "No Good Deed Goes Unpunished – Even Humanitarian Loans to Clients Must Comply with the Rules of Professional Conduct" – (Vol. 6, No. 4) – October 2020; “No Good Deed Goes Unpunished – Complying with the Rules of Professional Conduct,” Attorney at Law Magazine - November 2020; "The Perils of Flat-Fee Agreements Under the Current Rules of Professional Conduct" – January 2021
Bar/Professional Activity:
- LACBA Small Firms and Solo Practitioners Section, Chair
- Recognition as Super Lawyer
- Abraham Lincoln University, Adjunct Professor
- Continuing Education of the Bar, Faculty
- Practicing Law Institute, Faculty
- LACBA Future of Lawyering Taskforce, Chair
- San Fernando Valley Bar Association Board of Trustees, Member
- Women Lawyers of Los Angeles, Member
- Association of Discipline Defense Counsel, Second Vice President
- California Lawyers Association, Small Firms Section, Member
- California Lawyers Association, Future of Lawyering Taskforce, Member
- California Lawyers Association, Attorney Health and Wellness Committee, Co-Chair
- Women in the Law Institute, Faculty
- LACBA Delegation to Conference of California Bar Associations, Chair
- Professional Responsibility and Ethics Committee of the Los Angeles County Bar, Member
- LACBA Networking Meeting Steering Committee, Chair
Educational Background:
- UCLA, Los Angeles, California B.A. – 1987 (history with a certificate in business administration)
Pro bono/Community Service:
- Volunteer, Los Angeles County Bar Association Veteran's Project, 2020
- Volunteer Arbitrator, Los Angeles County Bar Association Mandatory Fee Arbitration Panel, 2019
Verdicts/Settlements (Case Results):
- Dismissal of filed criminal conviction matter on behalf of client attorney facing discipline in State Bar Court, with no resulting discipline., 2020
- Declaratory relief trial in Los Angeles Superior Court involving apportionment of attorney fee claim of over $1.5 million. My client received award of 90% of total fees after a five day bench trial., 2020
Videos:
- "Deconstructing Girardi", Westside Bar Association, 2021
Honors/Awards:
- , Attorney of Distinction , Pasadena Magazine, 2021
- , Super Lawyer, Super Lawyers, 2022
Industry Groups:
- State Bar
Selections
3 Years Super Lawyers
- Super Lawyers: 2022 - 2024
