Credit: Bucks County District Attorney’s Office
A Morrisville Borough man who admitted to practicing law without a law license and obtaining thousands of dollars in legal fees from unknowing clients was sentenced on Friday.
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Michael Jerome McAndrew, 58, received a nine- to 23-month sentence in county jail and was ordered to five years of probation by Bucks County Court of Common Pleas Judge Charissa J. Liller. Additionally, McAndrew must live in a recovery house, undergo drug and alcohol treatment, and pay $26,000 in restitution to three sets of victims, according to the Bucks County District Attorney’s Office.
McAndrew, who went by the name Michael MacAndrews, had been on the run from the time charges were filed in late 2022. The Bucks County Detectives arrested him last August in Center City, Philadelphia. He was renting space in the city as he avoided his Bucks County warrant, the district attorney’s office said.
McAndrew pleaded guilty in March to theft by deception, deceptive business practices, identity theft, insurance fraud, and unauthorized practice of law.
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Operating under the business name of “Superior Legal Services” at 1609 Woodbourne Road in Middletown Township’s Levittown section, McAndrew allegedly scammed clients for years.
The scheme was uncovered following an investigation by county detectives and interviews with victims and a licensed attorney who had unwittingly co-counseled with McAndrew from June 2021 until early 2022, according to court papers. The attorney severed ties after discovering McAndrew was not licensed to practice law.
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County detectives interviewed people involved in two civil lawsuits to get more details on McAndrew.
“One said he signed a retainer with McAndrew for $30,000 on September 20, 2021, to be paid in six monthly installments of $5,000. He said he had paid McAndrew between $15,000 to $20,000 of the total. The clients in the second civil suit said they signed a retainer with McAndrew on February 18, 2022, and paid him $6,000 to represent them,” prosecutors said in a statement.
Authorities found that McAndrew falsely claimed to be a licensed attorney, used the name of an actual attorney employed by Comcast, and even secured professional liability insurance under his alias.
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Online reviews promoted McAndrew as “Mike the Lawyer,” and archived web pages of his legal services reviewed by LevittownNow.com showcased testimonials and advertising legal assistance for foreclosure and IRS issues.
During a search warrant executed at McAndrew’s Morrisville Borough apartment in 2022, McAndrew allegedly admitted to giving the impression he was an attorney. He also reportedly said he did not go to law school and learned what he needed to know by performing searches on Google.
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Superior Legal Services promoted the business on social media and by sending letters to people possibly needing legal services, detectives said.
The business advertised that it offered to stop foreclosures, mount a creditor defense, and help those dealing with the IRS.
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In court on Friday, Deputy District Attorney Marc Furber said McAndrew would portray himself as an attorney to fool his victims.
“Not only do they feel betrayed, they feel a profound sense of embarrassment that they were so misled,” Furber said of the victims.
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According to court papers, McAndrew was represented in his criminal case by a licensed attorney from the Bucks County Public Defender’s Office.
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