WASHINGTON, D.C. – America First Legal (AFL) has filed a bar complaint with the Committee on Professional Standards against New York Attorney General Letitia James. The complaint requests an investigation into allegations outlined in a recent criminal referral from the U.S. Federal Housing Finance Agency (FHFA), claiming that AG James committed mortgage fraud.
On April 14, 2025, FHFA Director William J. Pulte sent a criminal referral to the U.S. Department of Justice alleging that AG James has, in multiple instances, “falsified bank documents and property records to acquire government-backed assistance” as well as “loans and more favorable loan terms.”
In August 2023, AG James sought to purchase a home in Norfolk, Virginia, and declared the property would be her principal residence.
As the sitting Attorney General of New York, it is exceedingly unlikely that AG James intended to leave the state and move more than 400 miles from her office to establish Virginia as her principal residence. However, declaring the home as her principal residence would have entitled her to a lower interest rate on the mortgage.
The FHFA’s referral also alleges that in 2001, AG James falsely reported to the federal government the number of housing units in a building she owned in New York City to secure more favorable loan terms.
If AG James took the actions described in FHFA’s criminal referral, that would violate Rules 8.4(b) and 8.4(c) of the New York Rules of Professional Conduct. These rules prohibit lawyers from “engag[ing] in illegal conduct that adversely reflects on the lawyer’s honesty, trustworthiness, or fitness as a lawyer,” and from “engag[ing] in conduct involving dishonesty, fraud, deceit, or misrepresentation.”
AFL urges the Committee on Professional Standards to investigate these serious claims and impose discipline as appropriate. As AG James herself has repeatedly said: “There cannot be two systems of justice in this nation. No one is above the law.”
Statement from Dan Epstein, America First Legal Vice President:
“If what Director Pulte uncovered is true, then we have a sitting state Attorney General who made false certifications to the United States in return for federal benefits. But why worry about committing fraud against American taxpayers when you are willing to buck your ethical duties to the bar? For a state prosecutor who has maligned the President of the United States for political gain, public accountability will serve as a cure to Letitia James’ endless lawfare and abuse of power,” said Dan Epstein.
Read the bar complaint here.
Photo Credit: Adobe Stock / VINA
