Lawyers - did I just get scammed?
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Anonymous
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I booked a consult today with a immigration firm to discuss my case. It was supposed to be a Zoom consultation with an attorney for an hour, at $275. The host never started the meeting, and the phone number just leads to voicemail. This firm has good reviews online and a decent website. At no point did I talk to a human, the appointment was booked directly on the website, via Paypal. I am planning on starting a dispute via Paypal, but first I requested a refund via the firm's voicemail and email.
Do you think this was just a mistake on their part, or a scam? |
Anonymous
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Scam
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Anonymous
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OP here. It's weird because I specifically chose a member of AILA, the association for immigration lawyers. I didn't think any of them would be scammy.
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Anonymous
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I hope that either it’s not a scam and there was some genuine mix up and you’ll still get your consultation or that PayPal will process a refund for you if it is a scam.
PayPal is not great about protecting its customers, and unfortunately, if you pay via PayPal, your credit card company can’t intervene on your behalf. They can say you have to go through PayPal since you authorized the transaction and it’s PayPal that has the relationship with the provider who owes you a refund. If it’s a scam, please report it to your state’s Attorney General’s office regardless of whether you receive a refund. |
Anonymous
| Mistake. Call again. |
Anonymous
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Do you have an individual attorney name?
Seems odd that a firm would schedule an intake meeting online like that. Did you receive any emails that weren't automated? |
Anonymous
OP here. Thanks for the replies. My attorney was supposed to be Lynn Garfinkel, of Bethesda. She's listed on AILA. The Paypal address I sent the money to says Garfinkel, NY. All the emails were automated. |
Anonymous
| I found the website and there’s no phone number or email. That’s very fishy. |
Anonymous
| If you need an immigration lawyer, email chemphill@trowlaw.com. She helped us with our nanny and wouldn't charge for an initial consult. |
Anonymous
| From the MD Courts attorney info lookup, her phone number is 202-640-4420. |
Anonymous
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You can look her up here provided she is in MD (every state has a bar association) and even dispute a fee.
https://www.msba.org/site/site/content/Resources-and-Tools-Content/For-The-Public.aspx?hkey=60b9d077-7a36-4688-b444-86cfe064b5dd |
Anonymous
Forgot to include the link. Search for Lynn Garfinkel here, and it will give you that phone number. https://www.mdcourts.gov/attysearch |
Anonymous
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Best case is there was a mixup and you will still get your consult.
Worst case (more likely?) is someone stole her name to set up a scam. A reputable lawyer should never charge in advance via paypal. |
Anonymous
OP here. Yes, this is the number I was given in case of phone consultation. Mine was a Zoom, but I still called three times, since no one was letting me in. It goes directly to voicemail. I also sent an email to lg@garfinkel-law.com, which is where I was supposed to send my immigration files. I wondered whether her name could have been used to create a scam website, but there isn't any other trace of this lawyer on the internet, who is listed on AILA. Now I'm worried about getting my identity stolen. It isn't the money that matters, but all my sensitive information is in the documents that were required to be sent before the interview! |
Anonymous
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OP make sure to freeze your credit.
This way scammers hopefully will not be able to use any info they obtained Maryland case search doesn't show this lawyer doing much work in a long time. And it does have them having a Federal Lein, which is odd. The only other case they have worked on is from 2015 that one looks legit. Still odd to only have three records. I would report them to the bar. |