Beware of a lawyer named Adam R. Allan (aka Adam Allan), he scammed me out of $10,000.
I was looking at apartments to buy and went to an open house I saw listed with Douglas Elliman. At the open house I spoke with the onsite broker who seemed very nice and friendly. I mentioned that before I could buy something new, I was having issues with my current landlord that had to be resolved. She instantly said she knew one of the best lawyers in the city and had used him several times with great success. Based on her recommendation and glowing reference, I called him the next day. He said he had handled dozens of cases just like mine and was extremely confident of a quick and successful outcome. He said he required a $10,000 retainer to start, which I sent the next day. For the next month I emailed and phoned Mr. Allan almost every day to no avail, he never retuned my calls. I finally went to his office, which ended up being his home address. After ringing the bell and waiting for 30 minutes I finally left. That evening I received a call from what sounded like a drunken Mr. Allan, yelling at me for coming by his apartment unannounced and that if I ever did that again he would sue me for harassment. When I said I wanted my $10,000 back immediately, he said he had used it for research and he decided I didnt have a strong case and then hung up the phone. After doing a little more investigation (as I should have done before sending him the money), it turns out the real estate broker that recommended him, Hela Miodownik, is actually his wife. On Google shes listed on many lawsuits with Adam Allan as her attorney, most looking quite frivolous. He also claimed to be a Harvard educated lawyer and even used the email address adam. Allan@post. Harvard. Edu, but Harvard has NO record of him attending or graduating their law school. Susan, NYC
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