New York Paralegal Blog

Preet Bharara, the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York and Ronald J. Verrochio, the Inspector-in-Charge of the New York Office of the U.S. Postal Inspection Service (“USPIS”), announced today the unsealing of an Indictment charging SCOTT SANDERS, an owner of fleets of commercial vehicles, with participating in a nine-year automobile insurance fraud scheme to obtain substantially lower premiums for commercial vehicles he owned and controlled.

NEW YORK- Attorney General Eric T. Schneiderman announced today a settlement with AXA Equitable Life Insurance Company, after an investigation revealed that the corporation made an undisclosed change to its medical claim reimbursement policy resulting in lower reimbursements for many members.

Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance, Jr., and New York State Department of Financial Services Superintendent Benjamin M. Lawsky announced the arrests of three individuals for defrauding insurance companies and employment health plans of more than $485,000. The defendants are accused of submitting hundreds of false claims for mental health care treatments that they never received. SUDHA KAILAS, 33, HERLINA LUIS, 37, and JANICE SICH, 52, have been charged with Grand Larceny and Insurance Fraud, among other charges.[1]

Insurance Company Fired Employee for Filling Out EEOC Questionnaire, Federal Agency Charged NEW YORK -- Sterling and Sterling, Inc., an insurance company on Long Island, New York, will pay $120,000 to settle a lawsuit for retaliation filed by the U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission, the agency announced today.

SIOUX FALLS, SD—U.S. Attorney Brendan V. Johnson announced that a Florida man charged with conspiracy to commit mail fraud was sentenced on Monday, April 18, 2011, by U.S. District Judge Lawrence L. Piersol. Vij Misir, age 46, was sentenced to 36 months of imprisonment, three years of supervised release, and restitution in the amount of $1.5 million to Midland National Life Insurance Company of Sioux Falls and $495,000 to West Coast Life. Just before Misir’s sentencing, his ex-wife and co-defendant, Rajmatee Kapadia, also appeared before Judge Piersol and pled guilty to the same charge. Rajmatee Kapadia entered her guilty plea to the same count, conspiracy to commit mail fraud, which carries a maximum term of imprisonment of 20 years along with a potential maximum fine of $250,000. In her plea agreement, Kapadia accepted joint and several liability for the insurance restitution amounts imposed upon Misir. Misir and Kapadia were indicted for conspiracy to commit mail fraud by a fe...

Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance, Jr., today announced the sentencing of ARON GOLDMAN, 59, to 2 1/2 to 7 1/2 years in prison and $800,000 in fines, for perpetrating a massive no-fault insurance fraud through a criminal enterprise known as the St. Nicholas Group, which stole more than $6.2 million from automobile insurance companies over a 5-year period. On March 15, 2010, co-defendant MATTHEW KESCHNER, 38, was sentenced to 1 1/2 to 4 1/2 years in prison and $750,000 in fines. “This significant sentence follows a 3-month trial that exposed the inner workings of a criminal enterprise designed to exploit the no-fault insurance system,” District Attorney Vance said. “These fraudulent practices threaten the safety of patients, whose well-being was not driving the medical decisions made by the practitioners involved, and contribute to increased premiums for honest consumers. Our Office is committed to rooting out health care fraud wherever is it found.”

Governor Andrew M. Cuomo today announced that he has signed into law a measure extending federally-funded unemployment insurance benefits through 2011. Without this new law, the state would not be able to continue to pay a total of 93 weeks of benefits and would have forfeited $620 million in federal payments to the unemployed, negatively impacting approximately 166,000 New Yorkers. "This measure will ensure out-of-work New Yorkers will continue to have a federally-funded safety net to help them weather this prolonged economic downturn," Governor Cuomo said. "Re-entering the workforce can be daunting and time consuming. This law provides basic relief for the thousands of job-hunters across the state."

Class of 90 Older Former Workers to Share Funds in Case Against Insurance Giant ST. LOUIS – The U.S. Equal Employment Opportunity Commission (EEOC) today announced that Judge E. Richard Webber of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Missouri has granted final approval for distribution of a $4,500,000 monetary award to 90 claimants identified during the litigation as part of an EEOC litigation settlement with Allstate Insurance Company under the Age Discrimination in Employment Act (ADEA). In its lawsuit against the Illinois-based insurance giant, filed in October 2004, the EEOC alleged that a class of older workers at Allstate was adversely impacted based on age during a companywide reorganization. Specifically, the EEOC charged that in the year 2000 Allstate adopted a hiring moratorium for a period of one year, or while severance benefits were being received, that applied to all its employee-sales agents who were part of its Preparing For The Future Reorganization Prog...

NEW YORK, NY (September 23, 2009) - Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo today announced the arrest of eight individuals, seven of whom are hospital employees charged with receiving bribes in exchange for confidential patient information. The information was then allegedly used by others to lure patients into receiving unnecessary treatment and then submit over a million dollars in phony personal injury claims to insurance carriers. Today’s arrests stem from Cuomo’s ongoing investigation into allegations of bribery tactics being used at hospitals across New York to take advantage of the state’s no-fault insurance laws. In July, the investigation led to the arrest of 12 individuals and 9 corporations (“the Levy Enterprise”) across New York City, including two other hospital employees. According to the felony charges filed this morning in Bronx Criminal Court, seven of the individuals arrested today were public hospital employees who accepted bribes to provide confidential patient informatio...

Governor David A. Paterson today announced that $13.6 million was recovered from insurance companies between April 1 and June 30, 2009, for almost 3,000 consumers and health care providers who filed complaints with the New York State Insurance Department. This is up from $8.5 million recovered in the first quarter of 2009, for a total of $22 million for the first half of the year. “With so many affected by the economic downturn, we will continue to work to make sure New Yorkers get full value for their insurance dollars,” said Governor Paterson. “Insurance is a promise to protect us at our most vulnerable, and New Yorkers can rely on us to protect them if insurance companies do not keep their promises.” Acting Insurance Superintendent Kermitt J. Brooks said: “Governor Paterson’s commitment to consumers is one shared by the Insurance Department and we will continue to work to make sure they are treated fairly. If you have a problem with an insurance company, let us know. In these di...

Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo today announced the indictment of 12 people and 9 corporations across New York City for their roles in a criminal enterprise that paid hospital employees for confidential patient information, lured patients into receiving unnecessary treatment, and then submitted over a million dollars in phony personal injury claims to insurance carriers. Attorney General Cuomo also announced separate criminal charges against two hospital employees for accepting bribes to provide confidential patient information to members of the criminal operation. “The Levy Enterprise” was run by Daniel Levy, 32 of Rego Park, Queens, who owned and controlled two medical clinics: Bronx Sheridan Medical P.C., located at 1030 Sheridan Avenue, Bronx, New York and New Lite Bronx Medical, P.C., located at 1170 East Gun Hill Road. According to the 147-count indictment filed today in Bronx Supreme Court, Levy and the other defendants operated a scheme in which they paid hospital employees to...

NEW YORK, N.Y. (December 3, 2008) - Attorney General Andrew M. Cuomo today announced the arrest of the owners of the popular Saigon Grill restaurants in New York City for allegedly failing to pay its workers legal wages, taking illegal kickbacks from workers, cheating the state unemployment insurance fund, and for creating fraudulent business records to cover up their illegal actions. Simon Nget a.k.a. Chang S. Nget, and his wife, Michelle Lu Nget a.k.a. Pei Ying Nget, are accused of numerous criminal charges based on their business practices at the Saigon Grill restaurants in Manhattan, located at 620 Amsterdam Avenue on the Upper West Side and 91 University Place in Greenwich Village, and formerly located at 1700 Second Avenue on the Upper East Side. The Ngets have owned and operated the popular restaurants since 1996. More...