§ 931. — Penalty for misrepresentation.
[Laws in effect as of January 24, 2002]
[Document not affected by Public Laws enacted between
January 24, 2002 and December 19, 2002]
[CITE: 33USC931]
TITLE 33--NAVIGATION AND NAVIGABLE WATERS
CHAPTER 18--LONGSHORE AND HARBOR WORKERS' COMPENSATION
Sec. 931. Penalty for misrepresentation
(a) Felony; fine; imprisonment
(1) Any claimant or representative of a claimant who knowingly and
willfully makes a false statement or representation for the purpose of
obtaining a benefit or payment under this chapter shall be guilty of a
felony, and on conviction thereof shall be punished by a fine not to
exceed $10,000, by imprisonment not to exceed five years, or by both.
(2) The United States attorney for the district in which the injury
is alleged to have occurred shall make every reasonable effort to
promptly investigate each complaint made under this subsection.
(b) List of persons disqualified from representing claimants
(1) No representation fee of a claimant's representative shall be
approved by the deputy commissioner, an administrative law judge, the
Board, or a court pursuant to section 928 of this title, if the
claimant's representative is on the list of individuals who are
disqualified from representing claimants under this chapter maintained
by the Secretary pursuant to paragraph (2) of this subsection.
(2)(A) The Secretary shall annually prepare a list of those
individuals in each compensation district who have represented claimants
for a fee in cases under this chapter and who are not authorized to
represent claimants. The names of individuals contained on the list
required under this subparagraph shall be made available to employees
and employers in each compensation district through posting and in such
other forms as the Secretary may prescribe.
(B) Individuals shall be included on the list of those not
authorized to represent claimants under this chapter if the Secretary
determines under this section, in accordance with the procedure provided
in subsection (j) of section 907 of this title, that such individual--
(i) has been convicted (without regard to pending appeal) of any
crime in connection with the representation of a claimant under this
chapter or any workers' compensation statute;
(ii) has engaged in fraud in connection with the presentation of
a claim under this or any workers' compensation statute, including,
but not limited to, knowingly making false representations,
concealing or attempting to conceal material facts with respect to a
claim, or soliciting or otherwise procuring false testimony;
(iii) has been prohibited from representing claimants before any
other workers' compensation agency for reasons of professional
misconduct which are similar in nature to those which would be
grounds for disqualification under this paragraph; or
(iv) has accepted fees for representing claimants under this
chapter which were not approved, or which were in excess of the
amount approved pursuant to section 928 of this title.
(C) Notwithstanding subparagraph (B), no individual who is on the
list required to be maintained by the Secretary pursuant to this section
shall be prohibited from presenting his or her own claim or from
representing without fee, a claimant who is a spouse, mother, father,
sister, brother, or child of such individual.
(D) A determination under subparagraph (A) shall remain in effect
for a period of not less than three years and until the Secretary finds
and gives notice to the public that there is reasonable assurance that
the basis for the determination will not reoccur.
(3) No employee shall be liable to pay a representation fee to any
representative whose fee has been disallowed by reason of the operation
of this paragraph.
(4) The Secretary shall issue such rules and regulations as are
necessary to carry out this section.
(c) False statements or representation to reduce, deny, or terminate
benefits
A person including, but not limited to, an employer, his duly
authorized agent, or an employee of an insurance carrier who knowingly
and willfully makes a false statement or representation for the purpose
of reducing, denying, or terminating benefits to an injured employee, or
his dependents pursuant to section 909 of this title if the injury
results in death, shall be punished by a fine not to exceed $10,000, by
imprisonment not to exceed five years, or by both.
(Mar. 4, 1927, ch. 509, Sec. 31, 44 Stat. 1439; Pub. L. 98-426, Sec. 19,
Sept. 28, 1984, 98 Stat. 1650.)
Amendments
1984--Pub. L. 98-426 designated existing provisions as subsec.
(a)(1), substituted ``Any claimant or representative of a claimant who
knowingly and willfully makes a false statement or representation for
the purpose of obtaining a benefit or payment under this chapter shall
be guilty of a felony, and on conviction thereof shall be punished by a
fine not to exceed $10,000, by imprisonment not to exceed five years, or
by both'' for ``Any person who willfully makes any false or misleading
statement or representation for the purpose of obtaining any benefit or
payment under this chapter shall be guilty of a misdemeanor and on
conviction thereof shall be punished by a fine of not to exceed $1,000
or by imprisonment of not to exceed one year, or by both such fine and
imprisonment'', and added subsecs. (a)(2), (b), and (c).
Effective Date of 1984 Amendment
Amendment by Pub. L. 98-426 effective Sept. 28, 1984, see section
28(e)(1) of Pub. L. 98-426, set out as a note under section 901 of this
title.
