The city and county of Los Angeles are going on the offensive against scammers who dupe immigrants into paying exorbitant fees for help with their legal cases, the Los Angeles Times reported.

Officials fear fraudulent offers will only increase as the Obama administration's executive action benefiting many undocumented immigrants takes shape.

Los Angeles City Attorney Mike Feuer warned applicants Friday that if a solution seems too good to be true, "it probably is."

Con artists are already trying to cash in on immigrants' hopes stirred by President Barack Obama's announcement, city and county officials warn, according to KPCC radio. Even though application forms and fees have yet to be ironed out, the lack of information has helped fraudulent notaries, lawyers and other scammers with a chance to prey on unsuspecting migrants.

"They are already being asked to come to an office, and complete a form, get in line, pay a fee so they get to the front to the line," Rigo Reyes, who leads the Los Angeles County Department of Consumer Affairs, asid. "Well, there is no line. Anyone who is charging for forms, who is making misrepresentations, clearly is lying to them because no such thing exists."

Some scammers claim to be licensed attorneys when in reality they are merely state-accredited consultants who are allowed to translate answers on government forms but not entitled to give legal advice. Others take advantage of linguistic and legal differences.

In Mexico and Central American countries whose judiciary is based on civil-law tradition, notaries tend to be highly-trained attorneys, which leads some immigrants to place unwarranted trust in U.S. common-law notaries who receive minimal legal training at best.

Local officials are now planning several town hall meetings early next year to help immigrants responsibly navigate the assistance offers available to them. They also hope to publish information guides that will be translated into Spanish, Tagalog, Chinese and Korean.

Turning to help from unqualified individuals, meanwhile, can cost immigrants dearly, officials warned. Not only are some scammers known to demand exorbitant fees, but if they fail to properly file forms, they can also damage a migrant's chances of staying in the country.

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