Assemblymember Gabryszak: Bill Would Help Protect Victims against Fraudulent Financial Practices

January 31, 2012

Assemblymember Dennis Gabryszak (D-Cheektowaga) announced the Assembly passed a bill he authored that would amend the Criminal Procedure Law to assist a victim of false financial practice, helping them remedy the fraudulent financial claim that the victim is indebted or obligated to a defendant, or secured party, in a criminal action (A.3457).

“When someone makes a false financial claim against you, it can cause excessive and unfair damage to your credit rating,” Assemblymember Gabryszak said. “We cannot allow victims of fraudulent financial statements to go unprotected with nowhere to turn. By providing victims with stronger options to help reverse or disprove wrongful claims, we can help stop any unwarranted harm to the victim’s credit.”

Currently, when a victim has a false financing statement filed against them, they can file a correction statement with the New York State secretary of state. This bill would go a step further and assist those victims in proving that a financing statement was false with a certification filed with the secretary of state. That certification would be filed with the court where the fraudulent conviction was entered, along with the specific filing information related to the victim's false financing statement, strengthening the chances of overturning a false claim in court, Assemblymember Gabryszak added.

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