Tag Archive | Orange County
January 9, 2026  

An Orange County Judge Pleads Guilty in Workers’ Comp Fraud Case

Right here in our own backyard, a rare and high-profile workers’ compensation fraud case just went down.

Orange County Superior Court Judge Israel Claustro has agreed to plead guilty to federal mail fraud. This fraud is tied to California’s Subsequent Injuries Benefits Trust Fund (SIBTF). The program provides financial support to injured workers with pre-existing impairments.

Before and during his time on the bench, Claustro operated Liberty Medical Group, a business that arranged medical-legal evaluations for SIBTF cases. Federal prosecutors say Claustro secretly continued using Dr. Kevin Tien Do for report preparation and record review. This occurred even after Do was suspended from the workers’ comp system in 2018. The suspension was due to a prior health-care fraud conviction.

According to federal filings:

  • Claustro paid Do over $300,000
  • Liberty billed the SIBTF more than $3 million
  • Do’s involvement was concealed from regulators

Claustro will resign as part of his plea agreement. While the charge carries up to 20 years in prison, prosecutors are recommending probation and home confinement.

This case stands out for three reasons:

  1. Unusual defendant: Cases involving sitting judges are extremely uncommon.
  2. Program vulnerability: Medical-legal reporting remains a pressure point in California’s workers’ compensation system.
  3. System trust: Fraud drains resources from injured workers and erodes confidence in public benefit programs.

Claimant and provider fraud get most of the attention. However, this case illustrates that workers’ compensation fraud risks exist at every level. It reinforces the need for oversight, credentialing, and compliance throughout the ecosystem. Because at the end of the day, businesses are paying the costs of those that fraud the system!!

-JK

October 24, 2019  

Life Happens

Some days or weeks, life just happens when you least expect it to.

My wife and I whom both work full-time in heavy sales roles were smacked in the face with the reality that our nanny has to tend to her own sick child for the next few days.

My wife was literally getting ready to walk out the door for work yesterday when she got the sudden news from our nanny. Without hesitation, she stopped what she was doing and readjusted her entire day to care for our daughter.

Today it’s my turn but I am not complaining, I love this girl!

My daughter C. and me

Technology allows me to get my work done anytime, anywhere. Albeit on my daughter’s clock today, not mine. I have my Agency Management System, my work phone, and my email all at my fingertips which allows me to serve my clients regardless if I am sitting in my office or not. Not to mention my support staff back at the office. How great is that?

I may not be as productive, but I’m not skipping a beat either.

Kids or not, life happens to everybody and we all must face reality. Props to my fellow soldiers out there juggling life and work and finding ways to get it done. It might not always be pretty, but somehow it always miraculously works itself out.

-JK

December 10, 2018  

Workers Compensation Insurance For Doctors

For all outpatient physician practices and clinics including physical therapists, acupuncturists, chiropractors, dialysis, x-ray laboratory services; and blood, body fluid, and tissue collection and testing.

We have a quality Workers Compensation insurance carrier applying major credits off the 8834 physicians class code. I haven’t found another carrier who can compete with them in this market.

I found this to be true for two of my clients in the past month as we marketed their workers’ compensation insurance policy renewals.

If you know of a doctor who is interested in us exploring this option on their behalf, please share this message. Now is a good time to start looking ahead at 2019 as you’re reviewing operational expenses and budgets.

-JK

February 20, 2017  

Orange County Great Park

Since we’re in the middle of a lazy President’s Day holiday weekend with no real plans, my wife and I decided to check out Orange County Great Park in Irvine on Sunday to visit the Sunday Farmers Market. Located pretty much in the center of Irvine, not far from the Spectrum, Orange County Great Park is a transformation of the former Marine Corps Air Station El Toro into a massive metropolitan park.

The Certified Farmers Market is held from 10 a.m.-2 p.m. every Sunday. Fresh, locally grown fruits and vegetables, handcrafted artisan products, and food trucks are on site to buy from. The weather was kind of crummy so the turnout was sparse but we bought some good food to take home to enjoy. We also walked a lot of the park which is dog and child friendly. It’s a great place to let them run loose and drain their energy.

Orange County Great Park has “The Great Park Balloon” which is the park’s main attraction. With the ability to hold up to 25 to 30 passengers, and soar 400 feet above the surrounding landscape, it serves as a public observation deck for the Great Park’s development and offers a 360° view that spans 40 miles on a clear day. Unfortunately, it wasn’t a clear day and the weather wasn’t ideal, so the balloon was closed . All good though.

Overall, it was a fun inexpensive way to get out to enjoy the weekend. I highly recommend it if you have kids or dogs and are looking for inexpensive family entertainment. Here are a handful of Orange County Great Park:

Hangar Museum
The Great Baloon
Cool Walkway
Farmers Market
Friends and us at the hangar mini museum at the site.

For more information including hours and activities, visit Orange County Great Park.

-JK

September 26, 2016  

Get Around So Cal on the Metrolink

If you live in Southern California, or have ever visited, you know that our transportation system is awful. More like non-existent. Uber, Lyft, and other ride sharing applications have made life better, but I am still jealous we don’t have a better way of getting around Southern California compared to most other metropolitan cities in the U.S.

Even though there’s the much needed improvement, you can get around various areas of Los Angeles, Orange County, the Inland Empire and Ventura pretty easily on Metrolink. I’m a huge fan and absolutely love to ride the Metrolink trains every chance I get. Considering we have family in south Orange County and a local Metrolink station a mile from our house, we ride the train often. Joanelle and I call it the No Stress Express. We took it down from Tustin to San Clemente on Saturday and back home again this past Sunday. Since the 5 freeway is always at a standstill, it’s nice cruising past certain sections of that freeway at 65 MPH while cars aren’t moving.

Here are a few pictures from our recent ride:

There are still some hiccups and minor delays at times, but it beats the stress of sitting in your car in traffic. Now if only the Metrolink can branch out in to the South Bay or Los Angeles somehow, life would be great! Just wish I could take it to work a couple days a week.

Connect with Metrolink here:

FACEBOOK

TWITTER

INSTAGRAM

-JK