Maryland Class Action Slams Structured Settlement Buyers and Lawyers Who Victimized Baltimore City Blacks

by Structured Settlement Watchdog

A class action law suit has been filed against the alleged perpetrators of fraud against Baltimore City lead paint victims, primarily blacks, by Maryland structured settlement buyers,  companies associated with Lee Jundanian and lawyers associated with the suspect structured settlement factoring transactions,  Derwood lawyer Charles E Smith and his law group and College Park MD lawyer Anuj Sud and his law firm Sud Law LLC.

Access Funding, Reliance Funding, Entities associated with Lee Jundanian,  and Maryland lawyers Anuj Sud and Charles E Smith Named in Maryland Class Action Law Suit

The Maryland class action lawsuit filed July 6, 2016 in Maryland Circuit Court against the defendant structured settlement buyers and their alleged co-conspirators follows suit filed  Maryland attorney general Brian Frosh earlier this year. Download Maryland Attorney General Complaint Against Access Funding LLC Reliance,'as well as a civil suit against Smith and his law firm by Mary Alice Rose commenced in June 2015 and a series of scathing front page news stories in the Washington post in August 2015 by Terrence McCoy that blew the lid off of the alleged scam and led to expedited Maryland structured settlement reforms.

According to the July 6, 2016 Class Action Complaint against Access Funding, Reliance Funding, Charles Smith, Anuj Sud and companies owned by Lee Jundanian and his wife (at Trial Pleadings 69-71,  82, 98  )

• Despite the fact that nearly seventy five percent of lead paint victims were living in Baltimore City. Access Funding ensured that Charles Smith and his law firm, which is located in Derwood, Maryland, was in contact with the owners of the structured settlements, who were located in Baltimore City. There was nothing independent about the Plaintiffs being placed in contact with Charles Smith and his law firm
• In at least sixty separate petitions to transfer structured settlement annuity contracts to Defendant Access Funding filed by Access Funding between June 2013 and June 2015, Defendant Charles E. Smith, for himself and Defendant CES Law Group. LLC, signed an affidavit affirming that he had provided “independent professional advice” to individuals who had entered into contracts to sell their structured settlement rights to Defendant Access Funding,
• Defendant Charles Smith was the purported “independent” advisor for all Plaintiffs.
• The reason Access funding arranged the relationship between Charles Smith and his law firm and lead paint victims is because Access Funding knew Mr. Smith would not provide independent professional advice, but rather would simply write a form “To whom it may concern” letter advising that independent professional advice has been provided in order to for the transfer to be approved by a court.
• Defendant Charles Smith also has a long history of personal and business relationships with other officers, executives and agents of Access Funding, of which he and the other Defendants failed to disclose.
• Throughout all limes relevant to this Complaint, Access Funding also engaged in a scheme of not paying Plaintiffs the discount rate that it disclosed it would pay to them on the disclosure form.

The Counts in the Class Action Law Suit against the structured settlement buyer defendants:

1. NEGLIGENCE AGAINST CHARLES SMITH AND CES LAW GROUP, LLC
2. NEGLIGENT MISREPRESENTATION AGAINST CHARLES SMITH AND CES LAW GROUP, LLC
3. NEGLIGENT MISREPRESENTATION AGAINST ACCESS FINDING, LLC; RELIANCE FINDING, LLC; ACCESS HOLDING, LLC; ASSOC. LLC; AND EN COR, LLC
4. FRAUD/MISREPRESENTATION/DECEIT AGAINST CHARLES SMITH AND CES LAW CROUP, LLC
5. FRAUD/MISREPRESENTATION/DECEIT AGAINST ACCESS FUNDING, LLC; RELIANCE FUNDING, LLC; ASSOC, LLC; EN COR, LLC, AND ACCESS HOLDING, LLC
6. CONSTRUCTIVE FRAUD AGAINST CHARLES SMITH AND CES LAW GROUP, INC
7. CIVIL CONSPIRACY AGAINST ALL DEFENDANTS

Case Caption for the Class Action Lawsuit Against Structured Settlement Buyers

Crystal LINTON, and Dimeca D. JOHNSON, On Behalf of Themselves and Others Similarly Situated, Plaintiffs,  v. ACCESS FUNDING, LLC, RELIANCE FUNDING, LLC , ACCESS HOLDING, LLC,  ASSOC, LLC Serve on: Lee Jundanian, EN COR, LLC Serve on: Lee Jundanian, Charles E. SMITH, CES LAW GROUP, LLC, Anuj SUD, and SUDLAW, LLC, Defendants.  2016 WL 3627316 (Md.Cir.Ct.) July 6, 2016.

Crappy Better Business Bureau rating for Reliance Funding LLC

According to the Better Business Bureau of Mid-Atlantic, Reliance Funding has poor D+ rating, having not responded to a complaint filed March 8, 2016.