A Florida company is charging North Carolina property owners unfair and illegal fees for help recovering their property, according to a lawsuit filed by Attorney General Roy Cooper.

In a complaint filed earlier this month, the Consumer Protection Division in the attorney general's office and the state treasurer's office contend that Equity Solutions of the Carolinas, Inc. engaged in a pattern of racketeering and deceptive business practices in acting as a finder of unclaimed or abandoned property for individual North Carolina property owners.

Also named as defendants in the case are Equity Solutions President Dein Patrick Spriggs, of Jupiter, Fla.; Equity Solutions Vice President Bruce M. Cohen, of Cary; Maria D. Cohen, also of Cary; and Leo I. Liberto, of Jupiter, Fla.

"Companies that ignore the law harm both consumers and businesses that are doing things the right way," Cooper said in a news release. "We want to make sure there's an even playing field for North Carolina consumers and businesses."

The complaint, filed Aug. 13 in Wake County Superior Court, outlines the allegations against Equity Solutions and the other defendants. According to the complaint, Equity Solutions solicited North Carolina consumers to hire the company to help them recover unclaimed property.

Equity Solutions' communications told consumers that the company would bear all of the costs of obtaining the unclaimed property. The company then typically had consumers sign an agreement that allowed Equity Solutions to take a contingency fee of 30 percent to 85 percent of the value of any property recovered, even after the legislature made it illegal for finders to charge more than 20 percent of the proceeds.

North Carolina law sets out disclosure requirements and limits on fees for unclaimed property finders, a news release said.

Cooper's case alleges that Equity Solutions violated the law and submitted fraudulent documents to North Carolina court officials to circumvent those legal requirements.

As explained in the complaint, the attorney general's office contacted Equity Solutions in June and requested that the company not enter into any new contracts with consumers or file any new documents with the court.

However, Equity Solutions responded that the company planned to continue operating as before.

The complaint cites examples of Equity Solutions' alleged unlawful practices across North Carolina

To resolve the case, Cooper is seeking forfeiture of property and profits obtained by the defendants through illegal practices, cancellation of contracts, refunds to the lawful property owners, civil penalties and a permanent ban on Equity Solutions from conducting business in North Carolina.