By David Thomas

June 4 (Reuters) - The State Bar of California on Thursday filed disciplinary charges against three lawyers with Downtown LA Law Group, including two of its founders, widening its scrutiny of a plaintiffs' law firm already facing probes by other government agencies as well as a racketeering lawsuit by Uber.

The state bar's Office of Chief Trial Counsel (OCTC) said Thursday it has filed disciplinary charges against two of DTLA's founders, Daniel Azizi and Farid Yaghoubtil, over allegations that they operated a legal practice in states where they did not have licenses. Another DTLA attorney, Igor Fradkin, was also charged with practicing law in Texas and Maryland without court approval and without local counsel.

The state bar's chief trial counsel brought similar charges against DTLA's third founder, Salar Hendizadeh, in March. OCTC said Thursday they plan to prosecute all four disciplinary cases at once.

"When attorneys extend their practice into jurisdictions where they are not licensed or allow staff to engage in unauthorized legal work in those jurisdictions, they put clients at risk," Chief Trial Counsel George Cardona said in a statement.

A spokesperson for DTLA said in a statement that "we look forward to presenting the facts." The spokesperson said the firm's lawyers worked on cases involving "multijurisdictional issues" and that "co-counsel relationships were engaged to ensure representation was at the highest possible caliber."

Hendizadeh in April asked the State Bar Court of California, which oversees disciplinary complaints filed by the state bar, to dismiss the charges against him, arguing that the state bar did not adequately allege misconduct.

The California Supreme Court has the final say on all attorney disciplinary matters.

DTLA is separately being probed for filing allegedly false claims under a $4 billion settlement Los Angeles County reached last year to resolve more than 6,800 sexual abuse claims dating back to 1959.

The Los Angeles Times reported that DTLA represented nine people who said they were allegedly paid to file claims under the sexual abuse settlement, and that some of the claims were false. DTLA denied any wrongdoing to the LA Times. In November 2025, Los Angeles County District Attorney Nathan Hochman said his office was investigating any false claims submitted to the settlement.

The state bar has also launched its own investigation into the settlement, according to a January filing in Los Angeles County Superior Court. One month later, the Office of the LA County Counsel said it was investigating DTLA and others for alleged fraud connected to the settlement.

A DTLA spokesperson said although the firm cannot comment on ongoing litigation, "we are confident that the facts, when they are able to come out, will show that the LA Times reporting was flawed – to say the least. Downtown LA Law Group continues to provide the highest caliber of service to our clients."

Uber is separately waging a federal lawsuit against DTLA and others, alleging the lawyers conspired with medical providers to create and submit artificially inflated medical bills. The firm's spokesperson said Uber's allegations are baseless and "an attempt to deflect attention away from the sexual assault lawsuits filed by women across the country."