Internet Scam Reported to ASB
An Internet scam targeting attorneys in Mobile County prompted a recent warning from the Alabama State Bar. Members were cautioned to be on notice to exercise extra diligence when presented with circumstances similar to the following:
“A gentleman pretending to be [with] S & J Boring, Inc., who has a $300,000 claim against Great South Machine Tools Company, will contact you in reference to this $300,000 claim and, shortly after contacting you, a $200,000 cashiers check shows up from the defendant.
"The letter, however, is postmarked from Canada and there is not any real definitive information on the Citi Bank cashiers check. The scammer will try to get you to run that check through your trust account and then wire him his proceeds. Later, that $200,000 check will bounce and the wired money is now gone."
The Mobile lawyer who alerted the state bar indicated he attempted to locate an address for the scammer by sending him a FedEx package with the endorsed-over check. It appears that the two companies the scammer is using, S & J Boring, Inc. and Great South Machine Tools Company of Mobile, were legitimate companies, but both have been out of business for several years. Three attorneys in Mobile have been approached so far.
The economic recession continues to expose the practice of law to be more susceptible to this type of fraud. Names of actual companies, client contacts and referring attorneys are being used in an effort to sell the scam.
If you suspect you have encountered a similar situation, independently verify the names and contact information provided and do not disburse the deposited funds until the bank on which the cashier's check is drawn clears the check. To report a scam, contact your local FBI office.
It is also suggested that attorneys read, or re-read, the article by Sam Partridge, with the ASB Office of General Counsel, published in the November 2009 issue of The Alabama Lawyer. He gives a first-hand account of his brush with a scammer.
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