NYC sues Manhattan law firm alleging bogus injury suits

Uber Technologies

06/10/2026 20:59

By David Thomas
Oct 6 (Reuters) - The city of New York has sued a small Manhattan law firm for allegedly bringing bogus slip-and-fall lawsuits against it in violation of federal anti-racketeering law.
The city, in a complaint filed Sunday in Manhattan federal court, cited 15 allegedly fraudulent lawsuits brought by Asher & Associates and its attorneys, Ryan and Roberta Asher. The Asher firm claimed its clients were injured riding motorcycles, scooters and bicycles on poorly-maintained city roads when they were actually injured in other ways, like a fight or a hit-and-run incident, the city said.
The Asher firm dropped its cases without explanation after the city confronted it with "contradictory statements" in the lawsuits, New York's Law Department said in a press release. 
“Personal injury laws exist to protect actual victims of trauma, not to line the pockets of people looking to make a quick buck off City taxpayers,” New York City Corporation Counsel Steven Banks said in a statement.
Ryan and Roberta Asher did not immediately respond to a request for comment. 
The case is the latest around the country to target personal injury lawyers under the federal Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act, a 56-year-old law passed by Congress to help rein in organized crime bosses who were often insulated by foot soldiers, for a pattern of unlawful behavior. Damages are tripled under RICO if the plaintiff wins.
New York is also seeking damages under the city and state False Claims Act.
“Fraudulent personal injury lawsuits profit on the misfortune of others and taxpayers bear the burden,” New York City Department of Transportation Commissioner Mike Flynn said in a statement.
The city in its lawsuit said the 15 cases it cited are "the tip of the proverbial iceberg," and that it seeks to discover other lawsuits by the Asher firm that have allegedly generated "millions of dollars in legal fees, settlements and judgments based on false narratives."
Companies including Uber Technologies and Federal Express Corporation have filed a string of lawsuits invoking civil RICO provisions against plaintiffs' lawyers in US federal courts. Nearly 300 such cases have been filed since 2024, according to a report released Tuesday by the American Tort Reform Association, a pro-business legal advocacy group.
The case is The City of New York v. Ryan H Asher, et al., US District Court for the Southern District of New York, 1:26-cv-08753
For the city: Eric Proshansky and Cesar Ruiz of the New York City Law Department

(Reporting by David Thomas)