Well-Known Ocean County Attorney Charged With Stealing More Than $1.2 Million From Elderly Clients

TRENTON, NJ – A prominent Ocean County attorney has been charged with stealing $1.2 million from four of his elderly clients, including some who had dementia and others who had no close relatives to guard their interests, state Attorney General Christopher S. Porrino said.

Robert Novy, 65, who hosted a local radio show and taught seminars on elder law, was charged with first-degree money laundering, second-degree theft by unlawful taking and second-degree misapplication of entrusted property, Porrino said.

Novy, of Brick, was arrested Wednesday and lodged in the Ocean County Jail in lieu of $500,000 bail.

“While Novy held himself out as a leading legal advocate for the elderly, we allege that he corruptly used his reputation and his law license to prey on vulnerable seniors, taking control of their finances and stealing more than $1 million from their life savings,” Porrino said. “In his greed, Novy not only betrayed his oath as a lawyer to uphold the law, he betrayed all standards of decency.”

Detectives this morning executed a search warrant at the offices of Novy & Associates LLC, on Ridgeway Avenue in Manchester and seized billing records and other evidence. The Attorney General’s Office also obtained a court order and froze more than $3.5 million in assets held in various bank accounts of Novy and his law firm.

Attorneys from the Division of Criminal Justice also applied for a Superior Court judge to appoint a trustee to oversee the business operations of the law firm.

The charges are the result of an ongoing investigation by the Division of Criminal Justice Financial & Computer Crimes Bureau, assisted by the New Jersey Division of Taxation Office of Criminal Investigation.

The case was referred to the Division of Criminal Justice by Ocean County Surrogate Jeffrey W. Moran. Novy also was investigated by the New Jersey Office of Attorney Ethics, which issued an ethics complaint against him on Jan. 26 and assisted the Division of Criminal Justice.

Novy is accused of stealing $78,000 from an 88-year-old woman who suffered from dementia by billing the woman and her estate a total of $78,000 that was not supported by any invoice or records showing justification.

He is accused of stealing more than $176,000 from an 85-year-old woman who suffered from Alzheimer’s. Among other things, he allegedly withdrew funds directly from her personal account totaling nearly $60,000, converting them into cashier’s checks and depositing the checks directly into his personal account. In addition, he allegedly used his power of attorney to cash out an annuity the woman held, depositing more than $122,000 into his attorney trust account and then issuing checks from that account to his law firm totaling $117,000, claiming they were “power of attorney fees.”

He is accused of stealing at least $459,000 from an 87-year-old woman. Among other things, he deposited proceeds totaling roughly $387,000 from two annuities into his attorney trust account, and subsequently transferred those funds into his law firm’s business accounts. He claimed part of the money was for attorneys’ fees and power of attorney fees, but he did not justify those huge fees.

He is also accused of stealing nearly $550,000 from another elderly woman. He transferred nearly $300,000 that he held for her in his attorney trust account into the firm’s business accounts without any invoices or evidence that legal services were provided. On another occasion, Novy allegedly wrote himself a check for $250,000 from the woman’s personal bank account and deposited it into his own personal bank account.

“When senior citizens hire a lawyer to put their financial affairs in order, they should be able to trust that they will be treated honestly and with respect," Division of Criminal Justice Director Elie Honig said. "Instead, Novy is charged with deviously draining his client's accounts."

Porrino and Honig urged anyone with information about alleged misappropriation of client funds or other suspicious transactions involving Novy to contact the Division of Criminal Justice’s toll-free tipline 1-866-TIPS-4CJ to report the information confidentially.

Novy gained control through wills, powers of attorney and trust documents, and made himself himself the sole financial decision-maker for these clients.

Typically, Novy transferred funds from the personal bank accounts of the clients to his lawyer trust accounts. He then excessively billed the clients without any supporting invoices, withdrew funds from the trust accounts, and deposited funds into his personal bank account or the law firm’s operating account, the AG's office said in a release.

In some instances, Novy allegedly withdrew funds from his clients’ personal bank accounts and deposited the funds directly into his personal bank account or law firm’s operating account. When clients had sizable assets in the form of an annuity or life insurance policy, Novy allegedly directed insurance companies to redeem the policies and send the money directly to him. On another occasion, Novy allegedly wrote himself a check for $250,000 from the woman’s personal bank account and deposited it into his own personal bank account.

When Novy was challenged by trustees or relatives about client accounts, he said they were "administrative errors" and repaid the money.

The Division of Criminal Justice is continuing to investigate suspicious transactions related to more than a dozen additional clients of Novy.

Image: Ocean County Jail