Hackard Law is proud to note that Kevin O’Keefe over at LexBlog has shared some kind words about us in one of his recent roundups: If you’re looking for the best new blogger to join the LexBlog Network in the past year, Michael Hackard may be it as his first blog, Ponzi Clawbacks, has been outstanding… Continue Reading
Tag Archives: clawback litigation
Usury Claims in Doubt in CA Ponzi Clawback Case
Posted in Bankruptcy Clawback News, Legal RepresentationIn July and August 2012, bankruptcy Trustee Michael Burkart brought over one hundred clawback lawsuits in the underlying bankruptcy case In Re Vincent Thakur Singh, et al., U.S. Bankruptcy Court, Eastern District of California, Case No. 10-42050, against nearly 200 people who were defrauded in an elaborate Ponzi scheme orchestrated by Vincent Singh. The vast… Continue Reading
American Ponzi: The Blur Between Fantasy and Reality
Posted in Ponzi Analysis, Ponzi ProfilesWhile a work of fiction, the following report is a composite narrative based on actual events taken from real-life Ponzi schemes. Links are to stories Hackard Law has previously covered. California hedge fund wizard and snow-cone king Gonzo Wiggler, 50, was indicted by a federal grand jury today on multiple counts of conspiracy, fraud and… Continue Reading
Kim Rothstein: Costume Queen in a Ponzi Scheme
Posted in Ponzi ProfilesKim Rothstein, the wife of convicted Ponzi schemer Scott Rothstein, has had her sentencing delayed until June. The 39-year-old Mrs. Rothstein had earlier pleaded guilty in US District Court to money laundering conspiracy, witness tampering and obstruction. Scott Rothstein, the infamous Fort Lauderdale lawyer who engineered a mammoth $1.4 billion scam based on phony structured… Continue Reading
Swinger Political Operative Settles Rothstein Clawback Suit
Posted in Bankruptcy Clawback News, Ponzi ProfilesRoger Stone, the veteran Washington lobbyist sporting a Richard Nixon tattoo on his back, has reached a settlement with the trustee of convicted Ponzi mastermind Scott Rothstein’s bankruptcy. Sued for $400,000, the Republican strategist will end up paying just 4.5% of that amount at $18,000. Rothstein, a Fort Lauderdale attorney with a flair for easy… Continue Reading
Good Friday
Posted in Ponzi AnalysisAs much as we at Hackard Law enjoy pointing out the more ridiculous aspects of Ponzi schemes, their dark side is also readily apparent. Along with other types of fraud, the Ponzi scheme is not just theft, for at its core is the lie. Deceit defines this crime, and it’s a tactic that allows scammers… Continue Reading
SCI Bankruptcy Trustee Files Adversary Clawback Lawsuit Against 114 Defendants: The Complaint And Its Exhibits Are Over 1800 Pages
Posted in Bankruptcy Clawback News, Legal RepresentationHackard Law attorneys regularly represent plaintiffs and defendants in adversary cases, including clawbacks, in federal bankruptcy courts. The process of representation is often initiated by a preliminary review of our prospective client’s case. A part of this review is the use of the PACER online system (Public Access to Court Electronic Records) made available by… Continue Reading
Contingency Fees, Adversary Claims and Ponzi Cases
Posted in Bankruptcy Clawback News, Legal Representation, Ponzi AnalysisThe contingency fee system is a litigation reality unique to the United States. This system plays a significant role in the selection and prosecution of civil cases, including the prosecution of adversary claims against investors and/or victims of Ponzi schemes. While it is true that contingency fees can allow the poor and impoverished a “key… Continue Reading
Interview with Chuck Malkus, Author of The Ultimate Ponzi
Posted in Book Reviews, Ponzi Analysis, Ponzi ProfilesThe Ultimate Ponzi The Scott Rothstein Story By Chuck Malkus. Illustrated. 250 pp. Pelican Publishing Company. $26.00. The Ultimate Ponzi: The Scott Rothstein Story is available for order at Barnes & Noble and Amazon.com. *** Today Hackard Law interviews public relations executive and communications expert Chuck Malkus, author or The Ultimate Ponzi, a chronicle of… Continue Reading
Good Judgment Comes from Experience…
Posted in Ponzi AnalysisAnd experience comes from bad judgment. As news headlines attest every week, many people get burned by Ponzi schemes. There’s also an unwarranted assumption about victims of investment fraud: that they somehow deserved to get scammed, that they were stupid and greedy. Yet in a great number of cases, neither accusation is true. Let’s take… Continue Reading
Fonzie Scheme: Man Stole Millions, Built Himself 50’s Diner
Posted in Ponzi ProfilesMinnesota resident and convicted Ponzi schemer Gerard Cellette, already serving jail time in his home state, has been extradited to Orange County, CA to face trial for related fraud charges. Cellette, 48, is accused of running a $200 million scam that victimized investors across the country, including 55 in California. From 2005 to 2009 Cellette… Continue Reading
New Clawback Suit Over Miami Booster’s Massive Ponzi
Posted in Ponzi ProfilesA new clawback suit has been filed in the Nevin Shapiro saga. Shapiro, known for his role as a generous booster of the University of Miami’s athletics program, masterminded a $930 million Ponzi scheme that defrauded 60 investors from 2005 to 2009. The 43-year-old Shapiro left for a twenty-year vacation to federal prison after his… Continue Reading
Alleged Ponzi Schemer was Day Trading Wizard
Posted in Ponzi ProfilesJack E. Brown of Soddy Daisy, TN, has been accused in federal bankruptcy court of running a $10 million Ponzi scheme through his tax planning business, Brown’s Tax Service. Brown used clients’ financial data to solicit some 50 investors for his supposed day-trading program. By playing the markets with the skill of a virtuoso, he… Continue Reading
Avoidance Actions against Investors in Ponzi Schemes: The Fundamentals Revisited
Posted in Bankruptcy Clawback News, Legal Representation, Ponzi AnalysisU.S. District Judge David Godbey’s 32-page Order allowing the Receiver in the R. Allen Stanford Receivership Estate to “clawback,” or recover, all back interest payments paid to Stanford investors is a worthy read as a remedial lesson in the character of Ponzi-based clawback actions. Court-appointed receivers often file lawsuits or clawback actions against investors who were… Continue Reading
The International Bank of Wow
Posted in Book Reviews, Ponzi ProfilesMany people acquainted with Ponzi mastermind Scott Rothstein have noted that although he didn’t hail from Little Italy, he enjoyed playing up the stereotype. During his time gutting South Florida out of $1.4 billion, Rothstein assiduously cultivated the cartoon image of a mafia don. The outlandish suits, wise-guy demeanor, a taste for expensive prostitutes and… Continue Reading
Former Stanford CFO Revealed Ponzi “Blood Oath”
Posted in Ponzi ProfilesThe right-hand man of international fraud superstar Allen Stanford has received five years in prison for acting as a co-conspirator in his $7 billion Ponzi scheme. James Davis, 64, had been Stanford’s chief financial officer for the entire period of the scam, assisting in the manipulation of financial statements to deceive investors and regulators. Stanford International… Continue Reading
Accused Ponzi Schemer Predicted Profit Explosion
Posted in Ponzi ProfilesDoris “Dee” Nelson, indicted for running a $135 million Ponzi scheme, now faces civil action north of the border. The 51-year-old Spokane resident, also a Canadian citizen, is subject to a complaint filed against her by the British Columbia Securities Commission (BCSC). The BCSC charges that Nelson was operating a fraudulent investment program through her… Continue Reading
Accused Ponzi Schemer to Victims: I Love You
Posted in Ponzi ProfilesWhen tax planner and Sunday school teacher Jack E. Brown of Soddy Daisy, Tennessee ended a conversation with one of his investors, he’d often tell them how much he loved them. Yet if allegations regarding a scam ring true, it would seem that he loved their money even more. Brown is accused of defrauding around… Continue Reading
Phony “British Lending Program” Fueled a Taste for the Finer Things in Life
Posted in Ponzi ProfilesMartin Sigillito, a 63-year-old lawyer and Anglican bishop convicted for operating a $56 million Ponzi scheme out of St. Louis, was sentenced to 40 years in prison last week. He is also required to pay $30 million in restitution to victims. Sigillito had run the fraudulent British Lending Program (BLP) – a supposed real-estate development… Continue Reading
John Geringer’s “SEC Approved” Hedge Fund Was Ponzi Scheme, Says US Attorney
Posted in Ponzi ProfilesScotts Valley, CA investment adviser John Geringer and two associates stand accused of running a $60 million Ponzi scheme. The 48-year-old Geringer, along with Christopher Luck, 56, and Keith Rode, 45, were indicted on December 20th by a federal grand jury on multiple counts of conspiracy, fraud and money laundering. The US Attorney’s Office charges that… Continue Reading
Ponzi Poster: “Amazing” Scott Rothstein
Posted in Ponzi Posters, Ponzi ProfilesLike a potent strain of venereal disease, the Scott Rothstein Ponzi case refuses to go away. Three years after the prominent South Florida lawyer’s $1.2 billion fraud imploded, its shock reverberates in the local business community. When Rothstein was raking in hundreds of millions in investor funds for his phony structured settlement program, there was… Continue Reading
Man Indicted for Ponzi Scheme Scammed by Woman Faking Cancer, Authorities Say
Posted in Ponzi ProfilesRedding, CA resident James Koenig, 60, faces trial in January for allegedly running a $250 million Ponzi scheme. Yet in a twist worthy of the film Dirty Rotten Scoundrels, Koenig himself may have been taken to the cleaners by a woman who is accused of faking terminal cancer to score cash and gifts from well-wishers…. Continue Reading
A Lawyer’s Take on Lincoln, Les Miserables and the Better Angels of Our Nature
Posted in Legal RepresentationSteven Spielberg’s Lincoln and the musical Les Miserables strike resonant tones for many Americans, particularly those million-plus lawyers practicing in the United States. I am one of those million. Like thousands of attorneys since Abraham Lincoln’s death, I have tried to apply his recorded wisdom into my everyday law practice. Les Miserables, based on the… Continue Reading
After Ponzi Indictment Vincent Singh Detained Over Flight Risk and Death Threats
Posted in Bankruptcy Clawback News, Legal Representation, Ponzi ProfilesToday in Sacramento Vincent Singh, indicted for a $20 million Ponzi scheme that defrauded around 200 victims, was ordered by District Judge Edmund Brennan to remain in jail until pre-trial hearing in January. Singh’s loan business Perfect Financial went bankrupt in May 2010 after he gambled away $12 million in client funds and could no… Continue Reading