Today's Date: Add To Favorites
Five districts falsely reported lawyer's job status
Legal Business | 2008/02/17 03:00
A federal grand jury in Central Islip has opened an investigation into possible fraudulent financial double-dipping at five Long Island school districts, according to several sources.

Agents with the Federal Bureau of Investigation served subpoenas for the financial records of the districts late Friday, according to the sources.

The subpoenas were served a day after Newsday reported that an attorney for the five districts, Lawrence W. Reich, received a public pension of $61,000 a year and health benefits for life after the districts reported to New York State that he was a full-time employee of each district.

Newsday reported that Reich, who said he had done nothing wrong, worked for the districts only part time, while also working for a law firm that was also billing the districts.

The subpoenas, from the office of the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District, ordered the school districts - Baldwin, Bellmore-Merrick High School, Copiague, East Meadow and Harborfields - to provide all their records involving financial dealings with Reich, and his former law firm, Ingerman Smith Llp. The sources said attorneys at the firm were also part of the focus of the probe.

Ingerman Smith, formerly of Northport but now located in Hauppauge, has represented nearly 50 Long Island school districts and currently represents approximately 40.

Robert Nardoza, a spokesman for Benton Campbell, the U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District, declined to comment.

Michael Conte, a spokesman for Harborfields, confirmed late Friday that his district had received a subpoena.

Officials for Baldwin, Bellmore-Merrick High School, Copiague and East Meadow did not immediately return phone calls. Reich and a representative for Ingerman Smith also could not immediately be reached.

John Milgrom, a spokesman for New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo, said Friday his office was reviewing the matter.

"While we've reached no conclusions, we take seriously and will fully investigate any claim involving a breach of the public trust or misuse of public funds," Milgrom said.

A Newsday review of records showed that Reich submitted no time sheets, never worked full time and that school officials knew he was working only part time. He was able to obtain state-funded family health coverage through the Baldwin school district and received pension credits from all five districts.

Reich retired from the districts with an annual pension of $61,459 in September 2006. But he continued working for some of the districts, according to letters he sent asking them to pay him a retainer, rather than a salary.

After Newsday inquired about Reich's arrangement on Thursday, the New York State comptroller sent letters to four of the five districts notifying them that they would be audited to determine whether they were properly classifying people who provide professional services as employees or contractors.

"We want to make sure that only individuals who are entitled to receive a state pension get a state pension," said Emily DeSantis, a spokeswoman for the comptroller.

Last July, state auditors uncovered the problem in an audit of the Harborfields school district but apparently took no action. Although the final audit did not mention the issue, Reich notified the districts last October that he would no longer work for them.

In December, Ingerman Smith wrote a letter to one of the districts saying Reich had left the law firm.


[PREV] [1] ..[5293][5294][5295][5296][5297][5298][5299][5300][5301].. [8286] [NEXT]
All
Class Action
Bankruptcy
Biotech
Breaking Legal News
Business
Corporate Governance
Court Watch
Criminal Law
Health Care
Human Rights
Insurance
Intellectual Property
Labor & Employment
Law Center
Law Promo News
Legal Business
Legal Marketing
Litigation
Medical Malpractice
Mergers & Acquisitions
Political and Legal
Politics
Practice Focuses
Securities
Elite Lawyers
Tax
Featured Law Firms
Tort Reform
Venture Business News
World Business News
Law Firm News
Attorneys in the News
Events and Seminars
Environmental
Legal Careers News
Patent Law
Consumer Rights
International
Legal Spotlight
Current Cases
State Class Actions
Federal Class Actions
A man who threatened to kill..
Ford cuts 2024 earnings guid..
Kenya’s deputy president pl..
South Korean court acquits f..
Supreme Court grapples with ..
Supreme Court leaves in plac..
Kentucky sheriff accused of ..
New rules regarding election..
North Carolina appeals court..
A court in Argentina orders ..
Mexican cartel leader’s son..
Sean ‘Diddy’ Combs jailed ..
Alaska man charged with send..
Protesters storm Mexico’s S..
Google faces new antitrust t..


Class action or a representative action is a form of lawsuit in which a large group of people collectively bring a claim to court and/or in which a class of defendants is being sued. This form of collective lawsuit originated in the United States and is still predominantly a U.S. phenomenon, at least the U.S. variant of it. In the United States federal courts, class actions are governed by Federal Rules of Civil Procedure Rule. Since 1938, many states have adopted rules similar to the FRCP. However, some states like California have civil procedure systems which deviate significantly from the federal rules; the California Codes provide for four separate types of class actions. As a result, there are two separate treatises devoted solely to the complex topic of California class actions. Some states, such as Virginia, do not provide for any class actions, while others, such as New York, limit the types of claims that may be brought as class actions. They can construct your law firm a brand new website, lawyer website templates and help you redesign your existing law firm site to secure your place in the internet.
St. Louis Missouri Criminal Defense Lawyer
St. Charles DUI Attorney
www.lynchlawonline.com
Lorain Elyria Divorce Lawyer
www.loraindivorceattorney.com
Legal Document Services in Los Angeles, CA
Best Legal Document Preparation
www.tllsg.com
Car Accident Lawyers
Sunnyvale, CA Personal Injury Attorney
www.esrajunglaw.com
East Greenwich Family Law Attorney
Divorce Lawyer - Erica S. Janton
www.jantonfamilylaw.com/about
St. Louis Missouri Criminal Defense Lawyer
St. Charles DUI Attorney
www.lynchlawonline.com
Connecticut Special Education Lawyer
www.fortelawgroup.com
  Law Firm Directory
 
 
 
© ClassActionTimes.com. All rights reserved.

The content contained on the web site has been prepared by Class Action Times as a service to the internet community and is not intended to constitute legal advice or a substitute for consultation with a licensed legal professional in a particular case or circumstance. Affordable Law Firm Web Design