Washington Attorney General Bob Ferguson announced today that his office put a stop to an alleged bad business practices by a Lynnwood company that helps military veterans with federal financial assistance.
Emerald Capital Preservation is accused of failing to disclose a financial conflict of interest to clients and charging unreasonable fees for a free service available through the Veterans Administration.
ECP provided elder care planning and information about qualifying for Aid & Attendance, a benefit administered by the federal Veterans Administration (VA). ECP solicited customers by providing presentations at local assisted living facilities and other organizations such as Rotary clubs. During these presentations, ECP focused on recruiting veteran clients by providing estate-planning advice and discussed ways individuals could avoid the legal process of administering their estate, also known as probate. However, ECP never disclosed to attendees that it was not affiliated with or otherwise endorsed by the VA or the Washington State Department of Veterans Affairs, in violation of the state’s Pension Poacher Prevention Act.
ECP’s clients included Washington veterans, many of whom ECP referred to local attorneys to draft living trusts and special house trusts. Establishing these trusts was done in order to reduce the veterans’ incomes so they could qualify for Aid & Attendance.
As part of a referral relationship established between ECP and local estate planning attorneys, after completing the trusts, the respective attorneys would send their veteran clients back to ECP to have the trusts reviewed for spelling errors, executed and notarized. In exchange for providing these rudimentary services, ECP invoiced the attorneys and typically received $1,000 for these services. However, neither the attorneys nor Mr. Smith disclosed the fact that ECP would receive a significant amount of money for services that many firms would provide on a complimentary basis. In short, many veteran clients paid $2,500 for trust documents that should have cost only $1,500.
The settlement agreement will require ECP to pay $27,000 in restitution to 35 victims. It will also owe the state for court costs.
Veterans looking for assistance with Aid & Attendance should first contact the Veterans Administration or other military organizations like the VFW.
Always seek the advice of a licensed attorney when considering changes in estate planning
Contact the AG for aditional information on veteran and military resources
