A South Texas attorney was indicted on 16 counts of insurance-related fraud after an investigation alleged he filed numerous roof hail damage lawsuits against insurers on behalf of homeowners he never met.
The Tarrant County grand jury's June 5 indictment alleges that Richard Kent Livesay engaged in organized crime by submitting lawsuits against insurance companies between 2014 and 2016 without first getting the homeowners' consent.
|Fighting insurance fraud
The case was presented to the grand jury by Doug Wallace, a Tarrant County special assistant district attorney. He is one of six prosecutors paid by the Texas Department of Insurance to work in district attorney offices across the state to fight insurance fraud.
"You had homeowners learning they were parties to a lawsuit brought by an attorney they had never heard of," said TDI Fraud Director Chris Davis. "When insurance fraud occurs, we're all victims because it leads to higher rates for consumers."
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Livesay, a McAllen solo who also has an office in Arlington, did not return a call for comment.
In 2016, Livesay agreed to a one-year active suspension of his law license with the State Bar of Texas after the Commission for Lawyer Discipline alleged he used third parties to solicit hail damage cases on behalf of several homeowners without their consent. Livesay's suspension ends on Dec. 31, according to the agreed order.
John Council is a reporter with Texas Lawyer. Contact him at [email protected].
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John Council
Senior reporter John Council is a native Texan who covers litigation and appellate courts in his home state. Contact him at [email protected]. On Twitter: @john_council
