By Michael Gerstein
Associated Press
LANSING (AP) - A judge says a lawsuit against a state agency over a computer system that claimed thousands of people had illegally obtained jobless benefits can go forward.
Judge Cynthia Stephens of the Michigan Court of Claims turned down the state's request to dismiss the case, saying in Tuesday's decision that she doesn't agree with the Unemployment Insurance Agency, which argued the case is moot because people who may have unfairly lost money have recovered it.
Denying benefits, even temporarily, can have serious consequences, Stephens said.
Jennifer Lord, an attorney who filed the lawsuit, said she'll now gather more evidence for the class-action case.
She and other lawyers say the $47 million computer system that came online after the state's unemployment insurance agency laid off about 400 people in 2012 mistakenly accused thousands of people of fraud.
The agency used the system between 2013 and 2015.
The U.S. Department of Labor ordered the state agency to have real people review fraud cases in 2015.
Ken Silfven, a spokesman for the unemployment agency, said the decision is being reviewed.
Meanwhile, state lawmakers are holding a series of hearings this month to see what can be done about communication problems between the agency and those accused of fraud.
State Rep. Ed McBroom, a Vulcan Republican, has said he's concerned if the state was wrongly seizing people's assets over false fraud accusations.
Democratic U.S. Rep. Sander Levin also sent a letter last month to Gov. Rick Snyder urging the agency to review more than 60,000 fraud decisions made by the automated computer system.
Published: Fri, May 13, 2016
