The following seven companies and their owners have been permanently barred from operating any immigration services businesses and must collectively pay $370,000 in damages to the State of New York: (1) Centro Santa Ana, Inc. and Ana Lucia Baquero, in Queens; (2) Margo’s Immigration Services and Margarita Davidov a/k/a Margo Davidov, in Queens; (3) Miguel Fittipaldi, J.D., Ltd. and Miguel Fittipaldi, in Manhattan; (4) Arthur C. Hurwitz, in Manhattan; (5) Oficina Legal Para Hispanos, P.C. and Geoffrey S. Stewart, in Manhattan; (6) Asilos and Camilo Perdomo, in Queens; and (7) Mision Hispana, Inc. and Mayra Liz, in Queens.
The Attorney General began an investigation and issued subpoenas to these companies after receiving information that they were engaged in fraudulent and illegal business practices. The illegal conduct included, among other things, misrepresenting their authorization to submit documents on behalf of immigrants to the government and giving legal advice to immigrants. Further, some of these companies involved attorneys who aided others in the unauthorized practice of the law and simply lent their name to provide legitimacy to the business. Collectively, these companies abused hundreds of immigrants.
“These companies took money from immigrants by promising to provide services that they could not deliver,” said Attorney General Cuomo. “The fraudulent practices of these companies caused innocent people to face problems with their immigration status, even deportation. My office will continue to go after companies and individuals that defraud and abuse New York’s immigrant communities.”
As a result of the settlements with the Attorney General’s office, these companies are also required to notify all former and current clients in writing that they are no longer providing any immigration-related services and must submit quarterly reports to the Attorney General of any complaints from the public. Complainants may be eligible for restitution for using these fraudulent businesses.
The Attorney General’s office will coordinate with several New York legal associations to help handle the companies’ existing cases and to protect innocent victims.
LAWSUITS AGAINST OTHER FRAUDULENT IMMIGRATION SERVICES COMPANIES
In a separate action, Cuomo filed two lawsuits against other organizations that are providing fraudulent legal services to immigrants.
The first lawsuit is against four companies that have been illegally providing unauthorized legal services to immigrants. The lawsuits were filed today in New York State Supreme Court against: Inmigración Hoy, Inmigración Hoy News Today, Forensic Immigration Law, and Inmigración Accounting Service, which are all controlled by Edwin Rivera in the Bronx. These companies all offered legal counsel to immigrants without being licensed attorneys or having the proper accreditation. In thousands of cases across New York City and Long Island, these companies gave unlicensed legal advice and unlawfully filed immigration petitions with the United States Citizenship and Immigration Services on behalf of immigrants and their families, jeopardizing their efforts to achieve legal status. Further, the companies failed to provide consumers with written contracts in both the consumer’s native language and English, as required by law.
Today the Attorney General also filed a lawsuit against Thomas N. Toscano, a lawyer in Queens who worked with non-lawyers to illegally provide legal services to immigrants. Toscano failed to supervise his non-attorney employees and allowed them to operate a law office out of their home where non-attorney employees met with clients on immigration cases. Toscano advertised as an immigration attorney but had cases handled by his non-attorney employees, who often provided legal advice. Clients never got an opportunity to discuss their cases with an actual attorney admitted to practice law, and many immigration applications were later denied by immigration authorities.
The lawsuits seek to permanently bar the companies and their owners from providing immigration-related services in the future and seek penalties for these actions.
Chung-Wha Hong, Executive Director of the New York Immigration Coalition, said, “New York is celebrated throughout the world as a place of opportunity for all, and any company that lines its pockets by defrauding immigrants has no place in our city or our state. We applaud Attorney General Cuomo for his continued work to shut down fraudulent companies and stand up for New York’s immigrant communities.”
Jason Abrams, Chair of the Committee on the Unauthorized Practice of Law for the American Immigration Lawyers Association in New York, said, “Immigrants and their families can be subject to irreparable harm from unscrupulous individuals and fraudulent companies. The cost of this abuse is not just measured in dollars, but in torn families, stolen opportunities, and heartache. We are proud that Attorney General Cuomo is leading the way to shut down scams that prey on immigrants and we look forward to continuing to work with him to protect these vulnerable New Yorkers.”
BACKGROUND INFORMATION
The illegal actions of fraudulent immigration services organizations have disastrous consequences on immigrant communities. In addition to being forced to pay substantial fees, victims and their families are put at risk of suffering permanent damage as a result of receiving incorrect immigration-related legal advice. Individuals who followed the advice of fraudulent organizations have been subject to deportation due to inadequate or negligent legal representation.
Under state and federal law, only lawyers or accredited representatives can represent individuals before immigration authorities. Under New York State law, it is unlawful to mislead or defraud any person in immigration-related services. New York law also requires anyone providing immigration services to comply with advertising, signage, and surety requirements, and to give consumers written contracts in both the consumer’s native language and English that detail their services and cancellation policy. Further, it is illegal for not-for-profit immigrant service providers to charge excessive fees for services; the services must be provided free of charge or at a very nominal rate.
Today’s action is the latest stage of Attorney General Cuomo’s ongoing efforts to protect immigrants and their families from being targeted by fraudulent immigration services in New York. Other actions include:
The cases are being handled by Assistant Attorneys General Sandra Abeles and Vilda Vera Mayuga and Assistant Deputy Counselor Elizabeth De León, with the assistance of Assistant Attorney General-in-Charge of the Harlem Regional Office Guy Mitchell and Investigators John McManus and Angel Laporte, under the supervision of Special Deputy Attorney General for Civil Rights Alphonso B. David and Chief Counsel for Civil Rights Spencer Freedman.
If you have been a victim of immigration assistance fraud, please contact the Attorney General’s Immigration Services Fraud Unit Hotline at (866) 390-2992 begin_of_the_skype_highlighting (866) 390-2992 end_of_the_skype_highlighting or visit www.ag.ny.gov.