In a gripping legal battle, a Texas couple is taking on a title company over an alleged scam that cost them their dream home and substantial financial loss. Ashique Ali Hirani and Rashida Hirani filed a complaint against Alamo Title Company in the District Court of Harris County, Texas, on February 7, 2025. The lawsuit claims that the title company's negligence led to the couple falling victim to a sophisticated email scam.
The Hiranis' ordeal began in November 2023 when they started searching for a new home in Houston with their adult children. After several viewings with real estate agent Justin Duffield from Compass, Inc., they fell in love with a property at 4743 Ivanhoe St., making an offer in January 2024. By February 11, they had entered into a purchase contract with Southwest Wholesale LLC for $1,320,000, setting the closing date for March 14. Alamo Title was chosen as the escrow agent for this transaction.
Trouble struck on March 13 when the Hiranis received what appeared to be an email from Lyn Sullivan at Alamo Title but was actually sent by hackers using similar email addresses to impersonate Sullivan and Duffield. This fraudulent communication contained altered wiring instructions that duped the Hiranis into transferring $320,000 to the criminals' account instead of Alamo Title's legitimate account. The scam went unnoticed until it was too late; despite multiple requests for confirmation of receipt of funds from RateBeat LLC processor Manya Kaur, Alamo Title did not respond until after the scheduled closing time.
The plaintiffs allege that Alamo Title failed in its duty of care by not implementing adequate security measures to protect sensitive information such as wiring instructions. They argue that this negligence allowed hackers to access confidential data and execute their scheme successfully. The lawsuit also accuses Alamo Title of gross negligence and violations under the Texas Deceptive Trade Practices Act (DTPA), claiming misrepresentation of security standards and failure to disclose known risks.
As part of their legal action, the Hiranis are seeking damages exceeding $331,000 plus interest, along with exemplary damages for gross negligence and violations under DTPA which could include treble damages and attorney fees. They are also demanding compensation for mental anguish caused by losing both their money and prospective home due to this incident.
Representing Ashique Ali Hirani and Rashida Hirani are attorneys John S. Serpe and Chris M. Knudsen from Serpe | Andrews PLLC. The case is being heard in front of Judge Nelson Cuero under Case ID: 2025-08691 at Harris County's District Court No. 295.