California Unemployment Insurance Fraud – Insurance Code Section 2101
Unemployment insurance fraud or EDD fraud involves individuals working at a job and quitting or becoming unemployed. Then, they collect benefits through the government.
Suppose they get another job while they're collecting benefits through the government. In that case, the EDD will get involved and file a criminal case against them because they have cheated the EDD and the people of whatever state they're working for – in this case, it would be California – and they will file a criminal case against them in an attempt to recoup the funds that they took and put a felony conviction on their record.
Suppose you're being charged with unemployment fraud under California Unemployment Insurance Code Section 2101. In that case, you should seek the advice of an attorney who is familiar with this area of the law, has a successful track record, and can help protect your record and keep you out of custody.
The government has an investigative process to prove that someone has committed unemployment fraud. They will grab all your records from your employer if you were employed at any time. Obviously, they can also do other investigations, such as surveillance on you and trying to verify whether you're working when you're claiming that you are unemployed.
Really, what this crime is all about is somebody is double-dipping, and they are taking money from the government and they're taking money from an employer or another source.
Some Defenses to Unemployment Insurance Fraud
Some of the defenses to unemployment insurance fraud are that if you could prove that you weren't making any money and that you weren't violating any of the government's laws, then obviously, you would be able to make an argument that you're innocent and that you should not be prosecuted for this.
So, what the government is going to need to prove to get somebody for EDD fraud is that they're collecting both money from the government and money from another source.
You need to consider that when you sign the documents to collect unemployment money, you agree to many rules. You can't have money in your bank account, and you can't do several other things.
So, if you're questioning whether you've committed EDD fraud, you should compare the agreement you signed to the money you're making.
Next Steps If You Need Help
In these circumstances, I get you in the office. We go over everything. I just ask that you be honest and give me a straightforward account of what happened. Then, I can assess whether or not you've committed insurance fraud, and we can decide exactly how we're going to handle the problem.
I will give you all the information so that you can make an informed decision about how to handle the case. You don't spin things. Could you give me all the details? Then, I'll speak to the prosecutor and the investigating agent to see what evidence they have. Once we have all the evidence flushed out, we will sit down and decide the best course of action.
Some of the objectives that I always have in these cases are to try to set things up so that you can either get the case reduced to a misdemeanor or even dismissed and, obviously, keep you out of jail. One big thing that goes a long way in EDD or insurance fraud cases is if you can repay the money you took.
Paying it all back upfront gives your defense lawyer a strong bargaining position. Still, even if you could pay a portion of it back and then make payments over time, that's another way to get your matter reduced to a misdemeanor or dismissed.
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