Wednesday, December 05, 2007
NY Attorney Steals Down Payment
Joseph Levine, 59, Hewlett, New York, a recently disbarred attorney has been arrested and charged with stealing more than $300,000 from two clients he was hired to represent in legal matters during the past year. Levine faces felony counts of Grand Larceny in the Second and Third Degrees, and two counts of Criminal Possession of a Forged Instrument in the Second Degree.
In May 2007, an Elmont, New York woman was in the process of buying a home when her real estate agent recommended several attorneys that would be able to draw up the contract of sale. The woman selected Joseph Levine and eventually gave the defendant a $10,000.00 down payment on a home. The sale fell through the beginning of June 2007 and the woman requested the return of the money. The defendant suggested that he should hold on to the funds, in the hopes that he could resurrect the real estate deal. The client continued contact with Levine throughout the summer. As of November 8, 2007, she has not received a refund. The District Attorney’s Office received the complaint on September 12, 2007.
Levine filed an affidavit of resignation with the New York State Bar on April 6, 2007. He was disbarred on June 26, 2007.
The defendant was arrested by District Attorney Investigators Thursday morning. He will be arraigned in First District Court, Hempstead. Levine faces a maximum of 15 years in prison if convicted of the charges.
Assistant District Attorney Vickie Curran, of the DA’s Government & Consumer Frauds Bureau, is handling the case for the District Attorney’s Office. Levine is being represented by Robert Vella, Esq., of Mineola.
The charges are merely accusations and the defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
“Lawyers are hired into positions of trust, often during a difficult time of someone’s life,” said Rice. “The betrayal of that trust is something my administration takes very seriously and will continue to investigate and prosecute aggressively.”
mortgage fraud
I signed a contract to purchase a house via short sale in March 2008. My downpayment was $5000.00. The contracted price was $325,000.00. I recently discovered that the house is being sold to someone else for $250,000.00. Which is below what i offered. However all attempts to collect my downpayment from the attorney has been futile.
Posted by on 11/10 at 07:13 AM
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Trial coverage provided by Anne Mitchell, Crazy Fish Realty.
F. Jeffrey Miller Update - October 20, 2009
A hearing was held in Topeka, Kansas in front of Judge Julie Robinson. Miller is currently being held pending his sentencing which is set for December 22nd, 2009 at 9:00 a.m.. Steve Vanatta and Hallie Irvin, Miller's codefendants, will be sentenced at that time also.
Several motions were heard this week. One was a motion for Miller to be released pending his sentencing. Miller's attorney, Jeff Morris, argued that the court had dismmissed with predjudice the matter involving Miller's purchase of a commercial lawnmower, violating the court ordered monitoring agreement. He also argued that Miller was not a flight risk and should be released. This motion was denied.
Another motion heard by Judge Robinson was that of an escrow account containing proceeds from the sale of Miller's forfeited assets. This account has a balance of $143,000. Attorney Morris argued that his firm was due $100,000 for work done in the Miller matter, to date. The government argued that his 'un-itemized fees' were 'exhorbitant'. The balance of the funds, Morris argued, should be released to the Miller family to help pay for mounting household expenses.
The government argued that the 'Asset Forfeiture Provision' applies down to 'the last penny' and that 'the rights of the victims to made whole are of paramount immportance' and that no routine household expenses like Visa bills, are allowed.
Attorney Morris argues that there is more than enough assets to satisfy the jury's judgement of $2.65 million dollars. The government argues that the estimated value of his assets are only $1.4 million.
The government also stated that Miller has been paid dividends from a company Miller has an ownership interest in; Boreflex. From July, 2008 to present, Miller has been paid $330,509.30 from Boreflex, unbeknownst to the court appointed monitor.
Present in the courtroom was Todd Earnshaw. Earnshaw was indicted along with Miller and others in what is commonly referred to as 'Miller I'. That trial is scheduled to begin on January 11, 2010 in Topeka, Kansas.
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Rachel Dollar, the editor of Mortgage Fraud Blog, is an attorney and Certified Mortgage Banker who handles litigation for lending institutions and secondary market investors. She is an author and a nationally recognized speaker on the topic of mortgage fraud. Ms. Dollar is a shareholder with the law firm of 
