Curtis L. Novy
Carlsbad , CA 92010
MORTGAGE EXPERT WITNESS | REAL ESTATE FRAUD EXPERT | CONSTRUCTION FRAUD EXPERT | FINANCIAL INVESTIGATIONS | 30 years experience | Trial Testimony 2022, 2023, 2024 | Call Now: Curt Novy Expert Witness Serving Arizona, California, and Colorado (858) 336-0520
Financial Investigative Services (FIS) is a leading expert witness practice and licensed investigative agency specializing in elder financial abuse, mortgage and real estate fraud, mortgage underwriting standards/practices, private/hard money lending, real estate investment scams, fraudulent deed transfers, and notary fraud.
Our ability to be dually retained as an expert witness and financial investigator in commercial and residential matters provides our clients with a new level of litigation support and pricing options. FIS is owned and managed by Curt Novy, a mortgage underwriting, real estate, and investigation industry veteran. In the past five months, Mr. Novy has testified as an expert in six trials in federal and state courts in Chicago, Las Vegas, Los Angeles, Phoenix, Oakland, and San Diego.
FIS is retained by leading law firms and state/federal agencies to conduct confidential investigations, prepare expert witness declarations and reports, and then testify in federal or state courts as an expert witness in matters related to financial fraud, mortgage lending practices, escrow/title standards & practices, and real estate fraud.
In addition to expert witness testimony, FIS offers professional licensing verification, real estate file audits, construction fraud investigations, bank fraud examinations, divorce asset searches, forged document examination, fingerprint analysis, forensic accounting, insurance fraud, and notary fraud investigations through our suite of professional services or available through to our proprietary network of pre-screened financial examiners.
Please visit our expert witness and consumer protection websites:
FinancialInvestigativeServices.com
MortgageExpertWitnesses.com
FinancialCrimesNetwork.com
WhiteCollarPI.com
Our flexible business structure saves clients time and money by providing a one-stop source of project services, including contract investigations, mortgage/real estate analysis, forensic accounting, document examination, and expert witness services. All expert witness work is personally completed by Curt Novy.
As a licensed private investigation firm, we provide background investigations, fraud investigations, witness/suspect interviews, and provide a wide variety of additional services to compliment our expert work. Often, attorneys first retain us to conduct litigation background investigations and fact-finding. Our initial investigative services are billed at $150.00 per hour instead of charging higher expert witness fees.
At FIS, offering a wide range of services beyond standard expert witness services, saves our clients money and better manages the discovery analysis and litigation process. FIS has been retained on 225+ litigation cases. Representative cases include: bank fraud, commercial & construction loans, concealment of real estate holdings, divorce asset disputes, bankruptcy fraud, elder financial abuse, church/non-profit asset theft, fraudulent deed transfers, foreclosures, identity theft, insurance fraud, wrongful foreclosure, and wire fraud.
Professional Memberships:
-American Bar Association (non-attorney member)
-American Land Title Association (ALTA)
-Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE)
-Association of Certified Anti Money Laundering Specialists (ACAMS)
-California Association of Licensed Investigators (CALI)
-International Association of Financial Crimes Investigators (IAFCIA)
-Professional Private Investigators Association of Colorado (PPIAC)
Primary Areas of Expert Witness Testimony:
• Agency Buybacks & Insurance Claims
• Bank Audits & Fair Lending Examinations
• Mortgage & Real Estate Fraud, Divorce Investigations
• Elder Financial Abuse & Identity Theft
• Falsified Documents & Forged Deeds
• HUD-OIG, IRS, or FBI Criminal Investigations
• Loan Application Fraud, Misstatement of Material Facts, PPP Loan Fraud
• Mortgage Fraud Audits & Mortgage Underwriting Standards & Practices
• Private Mortgage Insurance, Private Investor Loans, Promissory Notes
• Real Estate Regulations and Standards of Care for Mortgage & Real Estate Brokers
• Title & Escrow Standards & Practices, Title Fraud, and Forged Grant Deeds
CA Dept. of Real Estate Broker's License # 01108665
CA Bureau of Security & Investigative Services, Qualified Manager/PI License # PI188926
AZ Dept. of Public Services, Qualified Manager/PI License # 1773687
https://www.linkedin.com/in/curtisnovy/
#RealEstateExpertWitness
#MortgageExpertWitnesses
#WhiteCollarPI
- Commercial Real Estate
- Construction Lending
- Escrow/Title Insurance
- Fraud Investigation
- Insurance Fraud
- Mortgages
- Real Estate Broker
- Real Estate Damages
- Residential Real Estate
- White Collar Crime
- Q: Please list your professional accreditations, degrees, licenses, and certificates granted:
- A: Active CA Real Estate Broker's License
AZ Private Investigator's License
CA Bureau of Security & Investigations- Licensed Private Investigator/Qualified Manager
CO Private Investigator
Certified Fraud Investigator
Bank certified mortgage underwriter & credit risk management (Wells Fargo Bank)
Bachelor's of Arts, CA State University Long Beach
Colorado Real Estate Brokers License (inactive)
- Q: Please list your affiliations or memberships in any professional and/or industry organizations:
- A: Active Memberships:
American Bar Association (Non-Attorney Member)
Association of Certified Anti-Money Laundering Specialists (ACAMS)
Association of Certified Fraud Examiners (ACFE)
CA Association of Certified Fraud Investigators- Certified Fraud Investigator credential
California Association of Licensed Private Investigators (CALI)
International Association of Financial Crimes Investigators (IAFCI)
Professional Private Investigators Association (PPIA) of CO - Q: Please list any teaching or speaking experience you have had, including subject matter:
- A: -Mortgage & Real Estate Fraud Training- State & Federal Agencies
-AARP Training for seniors in the areas of avoiding real estate investment scams
-Interviewed and quoted by AARP, CNN, CNBC American Greed, NY Times, Wall Street Journal
- Q: Have any of your accreditations ever been investigated, suspended or removed? (if yes, explain)
- A: No.
- Q: On how many occasions have you been retained as an expert?
- A: 200+ civil and criminal fraud cases. Primary expert testimony in areas of financial institution fraud including mortgage and real estate, bank fraud, escrow/title insurance fraud, mortgage identity theft, private lender fraud and misconduct. Actively retained on cases involving embezzlement of non-profit funds, bank fraud, insurance fraud, identity theft, mortgage banker disputes, insurance claims, and probate fraud.
- Q: For what area(s) of expertise have you been retained as an expert?
- A: Bank Fraud
Bankruptcy Financial Fraud
Commercial Lending & Lender Loss Analysis
Divorce Cases- Misappropriation of Community Assets
Identity Theft
Escrow & Title Fraud
Elder Financial Theft
Employee Misconduct & Executive Investigations
Financial Crimes
Human Resources/Internal Investigations
Identity Theft of Real Estate
Mortgage Origination Practices
Mortgage Standards & Practices
Fraud Investigations
Real Estate Fraud
Fraudulent Deeds, Title Theft
Trustee & Probate Fraud - Q: In what percentage of your cases were you retained by the plaintiff?
- A: Approximately 50%
- Q: In what percentage of your cases were you retained by the defendant?
- A: Approximately 50%
- Q: On how many occasions have you had your deposition taken?
- A: 30+
- Q: When was the last time you had your deposition taken?
- A: Deposition March 2024
Trial testimony November 2023 (AZ State Court)
Trial testimony January 2024 (Chicago Federal Court)
Trial testimony January 2024 (Las Vegas State Court)
Trial testimony February 2024 (Oakland Superior Court) - Q: On how many occasions have you been qualified by a court to give expert testimony?
- A: 30+
- Q: On how many occasions have you testified as an expert in court or before an arbitrator?
- A: 12 Trials. Most recent civil trial testimony appearances: 9/2022, 3/2023, 9/2023, 11/2023, 1/2024 (2 cases), 2/2024 (2 cases). I have issued 50+ court declarations and expert witness reports over the past 10 years. Admitted and testified in state & federal courts in both bench and jury trials.
- Q: For how many years have you worked with the legal industry as an expert?
- A: 15+ years. Received significant training, including industry conferences in 2021, 2022, and 2023. Conferences attended in 2023: ACFE Global Fraud Conference, CFCIA Conference, CALI.
- Q: What services do you offer? (E.g.: consulting, testing, reports, site inspections etc.)
- A: Confidential Attorney Consulting
Court Declarations
Expert Witness Reports
Witness Interviews
Primary Focus of Investigative and Expert Witness Services:
Real Estate Expert Witness
Mortgage Expert Witness
Mortgage Fraud Investigations
Escrow/Title Expert Witness
Civil & Criminal Fraud Investigations, Surveillance
Mortgage Identity Theft
Mortgage Underwriting- Agency Fannie Mae & Freddie Mac, HUD, Jumbo, and VA
Mortgage Risk Management - Q: What is your hourly rate to consult with an attorney?
- A: 2024 Fee Schedule (subject to change):
1.) Financial crimes investigations: $150.00 per hour for forensic document examination, fraud examination, background investigations, Notary and Deed fraud investigations, professional license verification, witness interviews, DMV record searches, and surveillance.
2.) Mortgage & Real Estate Expert Witness Services: See retainer agreement.
Note:
-Retainer fees are non-refundable. Clients must be represented by counsel.
-No cost referral to forensic accountants, fingerprinting analysts, and mortgage/real estate focused attorneys.
- Q: What is your hourly rate to review documents?
- A: Mortgage/Real Estate Expert Witness: Initial phone consultation with attorney (first 15 minutes, no charge). Attorney consultation services for pre-litigation or to examine loan documents, lender records, or real estate files for a flat fee to assess case viability.
- Q: What is your hourly rate to provide deposition testimony?
- A: See Retainer Agreement for all terms & conditions.
Note: Attorneys may not designate me as an expert in court filings unless a signed retainer agreement and advance payment of retainer fee is received. - Q: What is your hourly rate to provide testimony at trial?
- A: Please see retainer agreement.
- Q: Please list any fees other than those stated above (E.g.: travel expenses, copy fees, etc.)
- A: See Retainer Agreement.
Available Upon Request. Excellent references available from 2008 through 2023.
Curtis L. Novy
Carlsbad , CA 92010
Office: