A well-known New Jersey elder law attorney has been sentenced to 10 years in prison after pleading guilty to stealing millions of dollars from elderly clients. Robert Novy, 67, must also pay back millions in restitution to his victims.
Novy practiced elder law in the Jersey Shore area and for 20 years hosted a local radio show called "Inside the Law" on topics of interest to seniors. As ElderLawAnswers previously reported, Novy, who was arrested in October 2016, gained control of the clients’ assets through wills, powers of attorney and trust documents, transferring funds from their accounts to his own or his firm’s accounts, and then billing for services without supporting invoices. Novy's victims were elderly or deceased clients who did not have a close relative to claim their estate. A state investigation revealed that he stole close to $3 million from at least 24 victims.
Novy pleaded guilty on July 27, 2018, to first degree money laundering. The state asked the court to sentence Novy to 10 years in prison, including three years and four months of parole ineligibility.
"Novy preyed upon vulnerable seniors who trusted him as their attorney to guard their interests," New Jersey Attorney General Gurbir Grewal said in a release. "Instead, he callously stole their life savings, betraying their trust and the oath he took to uphold the law. We have secured justice with this lengthy prison sentence and have ensured that his victims will receive restitution from the assets we seized from him during our investigation."
In addition, Novy must pay restitution out of two funds made up of his seized assets. One $3 million dollar fund will provide restitution to identified victims, while a $1 million dollar fund is being set aside for unidentified victims who come forward. He also must pay $500,000 to the state as an anti-money laundering profiteering penalty.
For more information about Novy’s crimes and his sentencing from NJ.com, click here.
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