From the Richmond Register:
A Kentucky judge has ordered court officials to purge hundreds of lawsuits filed against clients by a disgraced disability attorney who masterminded the largest Social Security fraud in history, the Lexington Herald Leader reported.
Eric Conn pleaded guilty in 2017 to bribing doctors to falsify medical records for his thousands of clients and then paying a judge to approve their lifetime disability benefits. His plea agreement would have put him in prison for 12 years, but a few weeks before his sentencing Conn fled the country, leading federal agents on a six-month chase that ended when he was caught outside a Pizza Hut in Honduras. He was sentenced to an additional 15 years for his escape.
Before his downfall, Conn would pay doctors $400 to evaluate clients and then file small-claims lawsuits to recoup the cost, according to the lawsuit.
Pike Circuit Judge Eddy Coleman ruled this week that Conn wasn’t eligible to practice Social Security disability law during the time he was suing clients. Coleman said there were still hundreds of Conn’s small-claims actions on the Pike District Court docket. He ordered the court clerk to purge them all. ...
6 comments:
Nasty Ned is mischaracterizing a practice common among SSD, LTD, WC, and PI attorneys nationwide. Attorney sends client to a doctor to strengthen client's case. Client pays for the doc visit only if client wins. Don't understand why this practice is controversial.
"...lifetime disability benefits." Hmmm...I wasn't aware that SSA was now offering LIFETIME disability benefits. You learn something new everyday.
@10:07
I take your point, but as I recall ALJs can give a recommended number of years for a review, or at times indicate no review is necessary for permanent conditions (quadriplegic for example), although it's become pretty rare in recent years to see that finding. I imagine the ALJ getting bribed didn't exactly want people looking over his work, and could have suggested no review necessary in the future.
The practice might be "controversial" because neither Social Security nor SSI is subject to garnishment or attachment.
If you actuallly read the story you will notice that the basis was that Conn's previous disqualification from the Veterans court made him ineligible to practice Social security law because they are both federal programs. The state court ruling was simply an application of previous federal rulings as to Conn's history of fraud that was overlooked and tolerated too long, much to the detriment of his vulnerable clients
10:07, I hadn't thought of that, but you're right, totally and permanently disabled went out the window with SSI taking over the disability program for the welfare departments.
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