New Hampshire Attorney General Philip McLaughlin announced today that on March 13, 2002, his office charged James Moran with 8 criminal misdemeanor charges in Merrimack County Superior Court. The charges arise out of Moran's alleged violation of an Assurance of Discontinuance and a Merrimack County Superior Court Order, both of which placed conditions on Moran's way of doing business.

According to Attorney General McLaughlin, as early as 1998, James Moran owned and conducted business through Laser Pro Home Services and its division, High Peaks Roofing, a building contracting business. The Consumer Protection Bureau of the Attorney General's Office received complaints from consumers that this business requested partial payments and deposits pursuant to contracts it entered into with consumers, and either did not perform work on the contracts promptly; did not perform the work at all; or performed work in an unworkmanlike manner. Pursuant to these complaints, the Consumer Protection Bureau and Laser Pro entered into an Assurance of Discontinuance which placed conditions on Laser Pro in the performance of its work, including allowing it to collect payments prior to substantial completion of the job only for those costs necessary to start the job and requiring that it provide the consumer with a date on which it would begin work.

Subsequently, on July 27, 2001, the Merrimack County Superior Court ordered James Moran d/b/a High Peaks Roofing and Laser Pro Home Services to refrain from requesting or accepting prepayments for work not substantially completed.

In August of 2001, James Moran registered with the Secretary of State a company named Exterior Solutions which is also subject to the conditions placed on Moran d/b/a/ High Peaks Roofing and Laser Pro Home Services.

The eight misdemeanors charged by the State allege that James Moran d/b/a High Peaks Roofing violated the Assurance of Discontinuance and/or the Merrimack County Superior Court's July 27, 2001 order by failing to abide by one or more of the conditions placed on the business, including failing to provide consumers with a definite date when work would begin, failing to inform consumers in advance when work would not start on the appointed date, and accepting prepayment for work not substantially completed.