Overview
- Bonta told KCRA3 he “may have had an audible gasp” at the invoice but said lawyers worked around the clock to supply information to authorities.
- He confirmed outside counsel from Wilson Sonsini billed at rates in the thousands of dollars per hour, with multiple attorneys assigned based on seniority.
- He said most of the legal work occurred in a tight window in late summer to early fall 2024.
- The questioning stemmed from a federal case in which Oakland businessmen David Trung Duong and Andy Hung Duong were charged with bribery offenses and making false statements.
- Bonta’s adviser called the campaign-funded legal spending “absolutely proper,” while a legal-ethics professor said it would be justified only if the work directly related to the donors’ contributions.