Nationwide SNAP Violation Lawyers

Newark Snap Violation Lawyers

If you’re a retailer who accepts EBT at your retail store, then it’s possible have been the recipient of a a letter of warning from the USDA. This notification is probably a SNAP violation notice, which is alleging you have violated the SNAP program. The government will attach a number of pages to the SNAP violation notice, and it will contain records of transactions that occurred at your retail store that the USDA is saying violates one or more genres of violations.

After you get a SNAP violation notice, you must contact our legal team. Remember, you have only ten days to respond to the letter. If you don’t respond, the USDA will suspend your stores ability to accept EBT payments.

About The Program

This program helps families with money each month. The SNAP program benefits are distributed to consumers through an EBT card. The SNAP benefits on the card are not for general use, and they can’t be used for fraudulent cash back transactions. The EBT cards took the place of food stamps in the 1990’s and are issued by each state individually where the recipient lives. The program is operated on a national level by the federal government.

The government and the benefits that come with it are under handled by the United States Code and the Code of Federal Regulations. The USDA FNS agency enforces the regulations and runs the program.

What’s a SNAP Violation

SNAP legal violations happen when a store violates any of the rules below.

The grocery store is accused ofthe trafficking of SNAP benefits. This can mean fraudulently accepting benefits, or stealing the benefits.

The retail store took SNAP benefits in exchange for nonfood items like alcohol, tobacco, or other goods.

Your store submitted incorrect information on the retail stores application to accept EBT benefits.

The store redeemed more coupons than food sales over the same period.

Your employees took SNAP benefits from an unauthorized person who isn’t allowed to use the benefits.

How we can help defend you against a SNAP violation notice

Spodek Law Group has experience managing SNAP violation letters. We can handle your SNAP Violation appeal in all 3 phases of a SNAP violation action.

The charging letter is the initial step taken by the USDA to take away your right to take EBT benefits. The letter can come with, or without, prior warnings can come at any time. The charging letter will contain allegations, but most letters will lay out serious allegations, and have attached documents detailing the violations. Your response to the SNAP violation letter is due within 10 days. After you hire Spodek Law Group, our lawyers handle all of the communicationswith the USDA and for compiling all the necessary evidence, and drafting a response to the USDA.

Once the USDA reviews your answer to the violation letter, the USDA may still feel that your store has violated the rules. If that happens, they’ll will 100% issue a second letter which specifically states the agencies decision to suspend or disqualify the grocery store based on the alleged violations. Like before, you have 10 days to protest this verdict. If you don’t, you’ll be unable to protest the USDA decision. Once you hire our law firm, we file the legal papers and notify them appeal the decision. Our lawyers collect necessary evidence, and our team will generate an appellate brief which contains all of the case law, evidence, etc. which is necessary to overturn the decision.

In the event the USDA refuses to overturn the violation claim, in the Administrative Review, we will file a Judicial review at the local Federal District Court. The Judicial Appeal is like a normal court case, where you’ll have to do standard processes like discovery, file motions, and have a trial. Our law firm can handle these cases in all 50 states.

SNAP Violations

As a food store retailer, there are many laws have to obey in order to accept EBT. In most cases, many grocery store owners don’t run into problems. However, the SNAP program can be tricky. SNAP handles the Electronic Benefits Transfer Card, and has limitations. For example, people getting SNAP benefits cant buy electronic goods. If you violate the laws, you’ll probably get a SNAP violation letter. Snap violation penalties can result in severe and business crushing penalties. If you conduct a serious SNAP violation, then you may end up with a temporary or permanent disqualification. In most cases, store owners didn’t even know SNAP violations are even happening. In many situations, unethical employees who are misusing the SNAP EBT program. It’s helpful to speak with a SNAP violation lawyer to ensure sure you don’t have your benefits revoked.

When a charge letter is presented to your retail store, you have only ten days to respond to the claims. Your failure to respond to the allegations will permanently crush your store. In addition, the USDA will generate a verdict even though you don’t respond to the allegations. Without legal experience, you won’t be able to retain EBT benefits. Retaining a SNAP violation lawyer gives you a fighting change. Our SNAP appeals lawyers will challenge the decision of the USDA and appeal any decision. The financial penalties imposed can expensive – to the tune of ten’s of thousands of dollars. The USDA purposefully does large fines to curb violations. The USDA look to see if you have a store compliance policy. The policy must be in writing at the store and the policy must be at the time the violations were filed.

The store owner also has to be able to prove the compliance policy was in existence before the allegations, and was not drafted after the violation letter. The USDA typically also looks in order to see if the retail store owners benefited in any way from the fraud, or if the owners were aware of the fraud. If the management was involved it can lead to disqualification.

It’s highly recommended any owner that gets a letter speak to with a SNAP violation attorney. Failure can result in negative consequences. The USDA is required by Congress to issue a disqualification for a period of up to 5 years. This can result in huge losses which are hard to recover from.