Attorney General Takes Action To Halt Fraudulent El Paso Legal Services Operation
Deceptive business cards, embellished credentials among consumer law violations
EL PASO - Texas Attorney General Greg Abbott has obtained a temporary restraining order against an El Paso man who defrauded area consumers out of hundreds of dollars by providing unauthorized immigration and legal consulting services.
The Attorney General’s lawsuit, filed in El Paso County on Tuesday, seeks a permanent injunction, civil penalties and restitution against Manuel Escalante III and his business, ME Accounting & Consulting, for several violations of the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act (DTPA), including doling out business cards with embellished credentials that deceived consumers about the degree of his qualifications.
This marks Attorney General Abbott’s second legal action against unauthorized legal services providers in El Paso in less than a week. On July 7, Abbott announced a lawsuit against Patricia Puentes Monroy for operating a similar scam.
“These deplorable schemes target families who are simply looking for honest direction to live and work in Texas,” Attorney General Abbott said. “Protections are in place to keep all Texas consumers safe from such scams and my office will prosecute anyone who tries to circumvent those laws.”
The Attorney General’s lawsuit alleges Escalante charged customers at least $200 to determine their eligibility for immigration benefits and prepare documentation on their behalf despite not being licensed as an attorney or otherwise qualified. Escalante relied upon word-of-mouth and misleading business cards to advertise his fraudulent legal services business and deceive unsuspecting consumers into believing that he was authorized to provide legal counsel on immigration issues.
Victims of the scam soon found that they were subject to removal from the United States due to errors in the submission of the forms or because they were ineligible for permanent residence. Many consumers also lost hundreds of dollars in immigration filing fees. Read more at oag.state.tx.us
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Generally, mediations commence with a general session with all parties, counsel and the mediator. At the general session, there will be a discussion of the case, the issues on appeal and other matters important to settlement. Then the mediator will meet separately with each party and their counsel in separate "caucuses." In these separate sessions, the mediator will seek to foster negotiations between the parties and develop agreement.
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