Attorney Paal Bakstad of Sherman Oaks, CA; serial drunken convict

The state of California presented Paal Hjalmar Bakstad with a law license in 2001 after he graduated from Loyola University School of Law.

The State Bar Court found Paal guilty of engaging in the following misconduct.

• Arrested in Hollywood for driving under the influence (DUI)
• Charged with DUI and driving with blood alcohol content of 0.08% or more
• This was Paal’s second DUI conviction
• In 2014 Paal was arrested by the Redondo Beach Police Department
• Charged with driving under the influence (DUI)
• Charged with DUI and driving with blood alcohol content of 0.08% or more
• Charged with driving under combined influence of alcohol and drug
• Charged with failing, refusing and neglecting to follow notice requirements after driving a vehicle involved in an accident resulting in property damage
• Paal’s blood alcohol content was 0.15 or higher

As a direct consequence of his misconduct, the cheerleaders for Attorney Misfits sitting on the State Court punished Paal by gifting him with a complimentary 18-month term of probation.

And lastly, as one would suspect, Paal and his firm fail to disclose the misconduct set forth above on their self-serving website at www.tharpe-howell.com.  Apparently, Paal and the firm chose to conceal this relevant information from prospective clients to assure they wouldn’t limit their future victim pool.

As we speak (ca. July 2023), Paal practices his so-called brand of law with Tharpe & Howell LLP at 15250 Ventura Blvd in Sherman Oaks, California.