On Wednesday, April 3, 2024, the Supreme Court of California handed down a disciplinary ruling against attorney Vyacheslav Kuznyetsov. The Court ordered a two-year suspension from the practice of law but opted instead to stay the suspension and place Mr. Kuznyetsov on probation for two years.
The case is entitled “In the Matter of Vyacheslav Kuznyetsov,” with case no.S283570.
The order stems from Kuznyetsov’s previous disciplinary case in 2019, where he received a 90-day actual suspension, one-year stayed suspension, and one-year probation for misconduct related to his criminal conviction. As part of his probation in that case, Kuznyetsov was required to submit quarterly reports to the State Bar’s Office of Probation and notify them of his compliance with the terms of his underlying criminal probation.
However, according to a stipulation filed in his new case, Kuznyetsov failed to timely file reports that were due on October 10, 2020, and December 4, 2020, violating the conditions of his previous probation. The stipulation details that Kuznyetsov received multiple reminders from the Office of Probation regarding the overdue reports but did not submit them until January 26, 2021, after the State Bar contacted him about the failures.
As aggravating factors, the stipulation cites Kuznyetsov’s prior disciplinary record from 2019 as well as his multiple acts of wrongdoing by missing both reporting deadlines. In mitigation, Kuznyetsov provided letters from attorneys and others attesting to his good character. He also received credit for stipulating the facts, thereby saving State Bar resources.
Per the Court’s order, Kuznyetsov will be actively suspended for one year of his new two-year probationary period (with credit given for the period of inactive enrollment effective February 22, 2022, through August 10, 2023 (Bus. Prof. Code, § 6233). He must comply with additional probation conditions and, if he does so, the remainder of his two-year suspension will be terminated.
According to avvo.com, Mr. Kuznyetsov is a business attorney in Van Nuys, California. He attended the Santa Barbara College of Law. He acquired his law license in California in 2013.
A copy of the original filing can be found here.
