2 Say They Did Not Run Illegal Law Practice

Two men who ran an Antelope Valley lawyer referral agency pleaded not guilty Thursday in Lancaster Municipal Court to charges that they provided legal services without a license.

Patrick Hansen, 35, and William Phipps, 45, are charged with conspiracy to practice law and to solicit business for attorneys without having the necessary licenses, Deputy Dist. Atty. David M. Wallin said. Hansen is also charged with two additional counts of practicing law without a license, Wallin said.

In January, investigators from the district attorney’s office searched the offices of Attorneys & Associates in Lancaster, the legal referral service operated by Phipps and Hansen. Authorities said they had received complaints from attorneys and clients that the agency was providing unauthorized legal help.

“They were referring persons to lawyers after taking money from them,” Wallin said. “You can’t do that if you’re not licensed” by the State Bar of California.

Phipps and Hansen have denied wrongdoing, saying they provided only legally permitted services.

The charges that Hansen practiced law without a license stem from a divorce action that he filed and an attempt to negotiate a civil settlement, Wallin said.

No License Alleged

Wallin said the referral firm also sold a prepaid legal assistance program that amounted to a form of insurance even though it did not have a license from the state Insurance Department and Department of Consumer Affairs.

The misdemeanor charges each carry a penalty of up to $1,000 in fines and six months in jail.

At the arraignment Thursday, Lancaster Municipal Judge Howard Swart upheld a motion by prosecutors asking that Phipps’ attorney, Dell L. Falls, be removed from the case because of a conflict of interest. Falls was one of several local attorneys to whom Attorneys & Associates referred clients.

Falls said in an interview that the charges against the two men were “hazy and nebulous.”

A trial date for Hansen is to be set at a court hearing Dec. 6. Phipps will appear with a new lawyer or will ask the court to appoint one for him at a hearing Monday.