For more than a year, a California court has conducted one of the largest investigations in the state’s history into the conduct of attorneys handling cases related to the Los Angeles Department of Water and Power’s 2013 billing meltdown.

The results of the investigation may soon become clear.

Lawyer investigators Charles Calix and Abrahim Bagheri appeared at a federal court hearing in downtown Los Angeles on Tuesday to provide an update on the investigation. Calix told U.S. District Judge Stanley Blumenfeld Jr. that a “public lawsuit” against some individuals could take place in the coming months.

Calix suggested the investigation was unprecedented in the history of the bar. Another lawyer whose client is cooperating with the investigation told Blumenfeld at a hearing on Tuesday that 18 lawyers are under investigation.

Investigators are investigating how the city attorney’s office handled a lawsuit initiated in 2013 stemming from a flaw in the DWP billing system.

Faced with an onslaught of lawsuits over billing errors, city attorneys conspired with opposing attorneys to expedite a class action lawsuit filed by DWP’s customers.

The collusion lawsuit was known within the City Attorney’s Office as the “White Knight” lawsuit because it was “a costly, embarrassing, and politically damaging lawsuit that the city wanted.” The aim was to “quickly resolve the case on reasonable terms,” ​​said a U.S. Attorney’s Office prosecutor. wrote in court papers this month.

A criminal investigation led by the U.S. Attorney’s Office has yielded two guilty pleas from former Siti Atti attorneys. Mike Fuer.

In court filings, the prosecution cited other “top city attorney’s office officials” who oversaw the legal plan, but did not file additional charges.

U.S. Attorney’s Office spokesman Tom Murozek declined to comment Friday when asked about the lack of prosecution.

A 2021 court-ordered report on the conduct of attorneys concluded that several “violated ethical rules against fraud, deception and collusion, and violated professional conduct rules to violate their ethical obligations in court.” rice field.

During Tuesday’s hearing, Calix told Blumenfeld that some attorneys under investigation by the California Attorney General’s Office have filed self-imposed charges as part of an apparent effort to expire the statute of limitations on potential charges. He said he was exercising his Fifth Amendment right to the conviction.

Those helping the court investigate include Paul Paradis, an attorney who worked for Foyer’s office. Paradis pleaded guilty to one count of bribery in a federal investigation into the legal plan.

Paradis was due to be sentenced on Tuesday, but Blumenfeld has postponed the sentencing until September so that Paradis can continue to assist attorneys-at-law investigators.

Paradis’ attorney David Shaper told the judge that his client would assist prosecutors in both criminal and state investigations to “root out corruption at its highest levels.”

He also said 18 lawyers are under investigation in court. A spokeswoman for the California attorney declined to comment on how many attorneys are under investigation.

The city of Paradis had previously accused Mr. Foyer of knowing wrongdoing in the case and accused the former city attorney of perjury during a 2019 deposition. Foyer has denied the allegations.

In August 2022, the U.S. Attorney’s Office sent a letter to Mr. Foyer’s attorneys noting the lack of an active investigation into Mr. Foyer in connection with the DWP claims scandal.

Paradis targeted another former senior official in Mr. Foyer’s office earlier this month, former chief of staff Mr. Ati. Jim Clark. In a letter to Blumenfeld, Mr. Paradis said he asked Mr. Clarke and others to carry out a “collusion lawsuit plan.”

Clark’s attorney, Marisol Moak, told The Times that Paradis’ letter was “to persuade the court to shift responsibility for the egregious conduct detailed by the criminal defendant to others and to reduce his imprisonment.” It is nothing but the last effort of . U.S. Attorney’s Office. “

Another attorney, Paul Kiesel, who worked with the city attorney’s office on the DWP claims lawsuit, told The Times on Monday that Clark directed Paradis Island to draft a lawsuit later known as the “White Knight” complaint. He said he was present at the meeting at the time.

Mr. Moak did not immediately respond to a request for comment on Mr. Kiesel’s remarks.

Clark has not been charged in the case.

Foyer, who is running for Congress, has admitted he is under investigation by California attorneys, but insists he has done nothing wrong. “He’s fully cooperating and I have full confidence that nothing will go wrong with me,” Mr. Feuer, who arrived on Tuesday, said.

Mr. Feuer declined to comment on Tuesday when asked about Mr. Kiesel and Mr. Paradis’ comments about Clark.