Zed Ziafasy, a Glendale-based immigration consultant, told the NBC4 I-Team he was shocked to learn he was being sued by a company he had never heard of and was not a former client.
“It was basically a shakedown,” Giafathy told the I-Team.
Ziafasy, who has worked as a consultant for more than 40 years, said the lawsuit came “out of the blue” and accused him of violating California law governing his business, without citing evidence or evidence.
“There are no details in it, no signatures under penalty of perjury by an attorney. So it’s basically a fishing expedition,” Ziafathy said of the charges laid out in the legal complaint.
He said he soon learned that dozens of other immigration consultants, who are not attorneys who help people fill out and submit immigration forms, were also being sued by the same attorney.
Ziafathy said she reluctantly paid the cash settlement because it was cheaper than going to court.
“Because if you wanted to sue, you had to pay out of pocket,” he says.
The I-Team found more than 300 nearly identical lawsuits filed against immigration consultants across Southern California, and like Ziafathy’s case, most of them received settlements, according to court records. It is shown that the case was concluded with the payment of .
Some of those sued say they are determined to fight back.
“He’s using the judiciary as a gun against the people,” said Shafi Afridi, an Orange County-based immigration consultant. Shafi Afridi is being sued by the same lawyer who filed the lawsuit against Ziafasi and others.
Mr. Afridi has shown a determination to fight what he calls baseless accusations in court and has carefully followed state law by submitting a background check, posting bond, and registering as an immigration consultant with the California Secretary of State. He said he could prove that.
“Injustice. This is extortion,” he said, adding, “I have to stand up. That’s my case, that’s why I fight.”
The I-Team has been sued for more than a dozen people, including Linda Young, who has been registered as an immigration consultant since 1987 and says she serves many people who speak Mandarin and Cantonese from her Alhambra office. I met with an immigration consultant.
“I’m angry,” she told the I-Team.
Although Young said he can prove he never broke the law, he said he paid $12,000 to settle a lawsuit filed against him several years ago.
“I’m 60 years old. This is the money I want to retire with,” she said.
Ann L. Lachman, an attorney who is representing Mr. Afridi and several other immigration consultants in the Orange County case, said she believes the case she is working on reeks of state reorganization.
“This case is all about the use of the Immigration Consultant Act as a weapon by the plaintiffs’ attorneys, or by the plaintiffs themselves,” she said.
“As a weapon to attack all the other defendants and make them pay.”
Lachman said this law is a California law that regulates immigration consultants and is unusual in that it allows private individuals to represent the state in filing lawsuits and collecting attorney fees. Ta.
She said the charges filed against her clients contain no evidence of violations, and so far no violations have been found as she prepares the case for trial.
The lawyer filing all of these lawsuits is Sebastian Medvey, who told the I-Team that he does not need to show evidence of wrongdoing to initiate legal action.
“In every case we bring, there is evidence of rampant violations,” he said outside an Orange County courtroom.
Mr. Medvey is able to take advantage of people who are at risk of losing their legal status in the United States by charging exorbitant fees for simple services and providing malicious legal advice. He said he is trying to go after immigrant businesses that he accuses of being too popular.
“So there are victims everywhere. The problem is that most of the time they are afraid to come forward,” Medvey told the I-Team.
None of the lawsuits reviewed by the I-Team listed any victims or plaintiffs other than a limited liability company called the Immigrant Rights Defense Council.
California Secretary of State records show Medvey organized an LLC, and Delaware corporate records show he is also the owner of its parent company.
“The LLCs involved in these cases are not making any profits,” Medvey explained.
“They are not receiving money, but I am receiving money,” he added.
Public court records on settlements in Los Angeles, Orange and San Diego counties show Medvay collected at least $2,262,491 from lawsuits filed against immigration consultants, although Medvay declined to confirm that amount. .
Most of Medvey’s cases were settled out of court, but he won at least two in court.
He said what he was doing was legal, legitimate and ethical, and told the I-Team that he was willing to drop any lawsuit if the consultants could show they were following the law.
“If it’s not a violation, just show us the proof that it’s not a violation. God bless you,” Medvey said.
Asked how many cases he had dismissed after being satisfied with proof of compliance, Medvey said “none.”
Immigration consultants who are currently challenging the case in court say they hope a single legal victory against Medvey will begin to unravel what they call a predatory scheme.
“I told him this is my purpose in life,” Shafi Afridi said.
“I will not back down. I will not go anywhere until there is justice for me and others,” he said.
The judge heard evidence in Mr Afridi’s case during a short trial in September and promised to issue a decision in December.
