This has not been a good year for some North State members of the legal profession. Carolyn Chan – an attorney in Chico – was disbarred after being charged with six counts of professional misconduct. She’d already had two prior counts of being disciplined. John Van Dervoort was also a lawyer in Chico before he became ineligible to practice law. He’d been disciplined twice because of professional misconduct, that’s before he was put on probation by the State Bar for three years. Van Dervoort pleaded “no contest” to one count of driving with a blood alcohol level that was above the legal limit. In Lassen County, Superior Court Judge Tony Mallery has been removed from office. That decision can be reviewed by the California Supreme Court, but the Commission on Judicial Performance says Mallery was thrown off the bench for 23 acts of willful misconduct and 36 acts of prejudicial misconduct. Redding attorney Michael McCabe was disbarred last October for what were called “professional misconducts” that lasted several years. According to the State Bar – in 2023, disbarment was recommended for 76 attorneys throughout California. It was suggested that another 122 be suspended, and 300 cases of the unauthorized practice of law were referred to law enforcement.