Brian Kabateck and Shant Karnikian have published an urgent op-ed in the Daily Journal calling on the plaintiffs’ bar to take immediate, independent action in response to explosive fraud allegations against DTLA Law Group involving Los Angeles County sexual abuse claims.
In “Protecting the system: How the plaintiffs’ bar can be the solution to the DTLA scandal,” the attorneys confront what they describe as a “five-alarm fire” threatening both the civil justice system and real abuse survivors. The Los Angeles Times has reported allegations that DTLA Law Group recruiters paid people outside county benefits offices to sign retainers and file false sexual abuse claims—including two individuals who thought they were being hired as movie extras for $100 each and were instead handed scripts about abuse that never happened.
The op-ed identifies a fundamental flaw in the current response. Los Angeles County has announced it will subject all DTLA cases to additional screening before making payments on nearly $5 billion in settlements. But Kabateck and Karnikian argue this creates an obvious conflict of interest, noting that asking the defendant to determine which claims are legitimate would be like trusting a pharmaceutical company to vet injury claims against it. Similarly, law firms holding thousands of cases face their own impossible conflict, as every case eliminated as fraudulent potentially means more money—and higher contingency fees—for remaining cases.
The attorneys propose a solution based on proven precedent from the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power billing scandal, where the court appointed independent counsel to audit the settlement—a process Kabateck and Karnikian led over six years. They lay out a five-point action plan calling for reputable plaintiffs’ firms with no financial stake to independently review the DTLA inventory, evaluate each case on its merits, and create a transparent process with clear standards.
“Real victims are justifiably terrified that fraud allegations will torpedo their chance at justice — wondering if they’ll still be believed,” the attorneys write. “That question should haunt every member of the plaintiffs’ bar. If we don’t answer it with action — with real, independent vetting conducted by experienced and unbiased lawyers — we’re telling victims that our profession cares more about protecting our own than delivering justice.”
Read the full op-ed in the Daily Journal (subscription required).