Richard William Huye III, an attorney formerly with the Texas-based law firm McClenny Moseley and Associates (MMA), is expected to plead guilty in connection with a substantial property insurance fraud scheme following Hurricane Ida in Louisiana in 2021, according to federal court filings in New Orleans.
Huye, 34, faces a charge of conspiracy to commit wire fraud and is scheduled for a rearraignment hearing on September 28 before U.S. District Judge William Crain. Earlier the same day, he is set to appear for an initial arraignment before Magistrate Judge Karen Wells Roby. Rearrangement hearings frequently signal a defendant’s intent to change a not-guilty plea, often as part of a plea agreement with prosecutors.
Court documents allege that Huye played a central role in helping MMA establish a New Orleans office in the immediate aftermath of Hurricane Ida, which struck as a Category 4 storm in August 2021 and caused widespread destruction. Prosecutors assert that MMA managed insurance claims for storm victims and encouraged the Alabama-based roofing company Apex to expand into Louisiana. Apex is accused of persuading homeowners to sign assignment of benefits (AOB) agreements, which transferred their insurance claims to the company, sometimes without the homeowners’ knowledge or consent.
Louisiana homeowners’ insurance policies typically restrict or require insurer approval for AOBs, but prosecutors say Apex and MMA bypassed these provisions. Apex allegedly submitted numerous claims to MMA, and Huye and MMA reportedly sent letters to insurers asserting exclusive representation of homeowners without disclosing Apex’s involvement. This conduct is said to have resulted in some homeowners receiving reduced insurance payments or none at all after the improper withholding of fees.
Huye was charged via a bill of information on August 28 that focuses on eight homeowners whose claims were directly affected. The bill references an unnamed “co-conspirator 1,” believed to be MMA managing partner Zach Moseley, who along with Huye and MMA has faced multiple legal and regulatory actions.
Previously, investigations uncovered MMA’s use of a non-attorney online advertising company, Velavocity, to recruit thousands of storm victims. Louisiana’s legal ethics rules prohibit paying non-lawyers for client referrals. As a result, MMA was compelled to forfeit its clients, Huye was disbarred in Louisiana, and the state insurance commissioner imposed $2 million in fines on Huye, Moseley, and the firm.
MMA filed for bankruptcy in 2024, seeking liquidation, and a recent Louisiana Supreme Court ruling barred the firm from collecting fees from law firms that assumed its clients’ cases if those clients were signed up illicitly or unethically.
The conspiracy to commit wire fraud charge carries a potential penalty of up to five years in prison and a fine of approximately $250,000, though early guilty pleas can reduce sentencing severity. Huye, who has relocated to Austin, Texas, is among several legal professionals targeted in ongoing federal investigations into insurance fraud schemes in Louisiana.
Separately, federal prosecutors also secured convictions against more than 60 individuals involved in a fraudulent scheme that staged accidents with 18-wheelers. In September, a jury deadlocked on murder charges against two defendants accused of plotting to kill a witness linked to that case, resulting in a mistrial. Prosecutors have announced intentions to retry the murder charges.