11th Circuit Court

Former Law Partner of Scott Rothstein, 3 Others Face Wire Fraud Conspiracy Charges

A former partner in convicted Ponzi schemer Scott Rothstein’s law firm has been charged in an alleged wire fraud conspiracy, along with three other individuals. Ex-partner Howard Kusnick worked on a civil case in which client car dealer Ed Morse and his wife sued a kitchen designer. Rothstein, who operated…

May 27, 2011 3:01 PM CDT

Ex-Ala. Gov. Siegelman Disappointed in Ruling Tossing Only Two Bribery Counts

A federal appeals court has overturned convictions on two bribery counts against former Alabama Gov. Don Siegelman and former HealthSouth CEO Richard Scrushy. Siegelman didn’t consider the ruling by the Atlanta-based 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals as a victory. The court upheld convictions on five counts against Siegelman and…

May 11, 2011 12:11 PM CDT

Federal Judge Issues Arrest Warrant for Well-Known Defense Lawyer, a No-Show for Client’s Trial

Yesterday, when Florida attorney Michael D. Walsh didn’t show up to represent the alleged ringleader in a Fort Lauderdale mortgage fraud trial, a federal judge scheduled a show-cause hearing today to consider whether he should be held in contempt. Today, when the well-known criminal defense attorney didn’t appear at the…

May 10, 2011 5:49 PM CDT

Fortuitious $3.97M Tax Refund Helps Ex-Rothstein Partner Settle with Bankruptcy Trustee for $1.9M

A former name partner in the law firm of convicted Ponzi schemer Scott Rothstein is going to be able to settle a $10 million suit filed by the bankruptcy trustee overseeing Rothstein Rosenfeldt Adler’s dissolution, with the help of a fortuitous tax refund from the Internal Revenue Service. Because Stuart…

May 5, 2011 6:48 PM CDT

Suit Says Ben-Ezra Law Firm Was In Network Paying Kickbacks for Foreclosure Cases

Updated: A Florida woman has filed a federal suit against a Fort Lauderdale law firm known for its mortgage foreclosure work on behalf of lenders, contending that Ben-Ezra & Katz was part of a network of firms paying kickbacks to a foreclosure processing company to obtain legal work. The alleged…

Apr 25, 2011 5:45 PM CDT

Federal Jury Acquits Fla. Real Estate Closing Attorney in $7.8M Mortgage Fraud Case

A 55-year-old Florida real estate lawyer was acquitted of 13 counts of bank fraud yesterday when a federal jury in Miami apparently agreed with the defense that Eve Rosen was unaware of the $7.8 million scheme allegedly orchestrated by a Broward County developer. Prosecutors called Rosen, who served as closing…

Apr 22, 2011 4:35 PM CDT

Wealthy Tort Lawyer Settles With Ex-Partner’s Widow for Reported $10M to $35M

For five years, mass torts lawyer James Ferraro battled with Lynn Arko Kelley, the widow of his former law partner. Now they have reached a confidential settlement of her claims concerning the massive sum she claimed to be due to her after Michael Kelley’s death from a heart attack. Although…

Apr 20, 2011 7:04 PM CDT

Bankruptcy Judge to Sanction Lender Processing Services in Mortgage Foreclosure Case

A federal bankruptcy judge in New Orleans has granted a U.S. Trustee’s motion for sanctions concerning its conduct in a mortgage foreclosure case. At issue are what Judge Elizabeth Magner.concluded in an April 7 opinion to be false testimony and a “sham” affidavit provided by Lender Processing Services, reports Reuters.…

Apr 14, 2011 10:57 AM CDT

Missouri Files Amicus Supporting States’ Challenge of Federal Health Care Law

Missouri today filed an amicus brief supporting states challenging the constitutionality of the federal health care law, according to the Associated Press. Florida and 25 other states filed the lawsuit, which is on appeal in the Atlanta-based 11th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals. In January, U.S. District Judge Roger Vinson…

Apr 11, 2011 8:38 PM CDT

11th Circuit Nixes Punitives for Reading Legal Mail Outside Inmate’s Presence

Serving a life term in the slaying of a Georgia deputy, a militant once known as H. Rap Brown of the Black Panthers has the right to have legal mail from his wife, who is an attorney, opened in his presence. But the inmate now known as Jamil Abdullah Al-Amin…

Apr 5, 2011 7:55 PM CDT

Fed’l Judge Says Chase Must Post $4M Surety Bond to Get Its Foreclosure Files Back From Law Firm

A federal judge in Florida has ruled that Chase Home Finance must post a $4 million surety bond before the Ben-Ezra & Katz law firm is required to return to the bank foreclosure files for some $400 million worth of mortgages. The law firm contends that it is owed $6.2…

Apr 1, 2011 10:39 PM CDT

Chase Sues Its Former Foreclosure Counsel, Seeks Turnover of Files in $400M Worth of Cases

Saying that its former mortgage foreclosure counsel, Ben-Ezra & Katz, has effectively called a halt to some $400 million in litigation by refusing to turn over the case files, Chase Home Finance is suing the law firm in federal court in Florida. At issue is approximately $5 million in unpaid…

Mar 28, 2011 8:59 PM CDT

Former Federal Judge Gets 30 Days for Helping Stripper Buy Drugs

A former senior federal judge was sentenced today to 30 days in prison and 400 hours of community service after pleading guilty to aiding and abetting a felon in the possession of drugs. Jack Camp, who was known for handing out harsh sentences when he was on the bench, had…

Mar 11, 2011 7:24 PM CST

Former Senior Federal Judge Should Serve Time for Helping Stripper Buy Drugs, Gov’t Says

Former senior federal judge Jack Camp should be treated “like every other similarly situated criminal” and sentenced to prison time, federal prosecutors say in a sentencing memo concerning his guilty plea to abetting a felon in the unlawful possession of drugs. The defense blamed Camp’s untreated bipolar disorder (he instead…

Mar 8, 2011 8:27 PM CST

Ex-General Counsel, 4 Other Former WellCare Execs Indicted in Claimed $400M Medicaid Fraud

A former general counsel of WellCare is among five ex-executives of the Florida-based company who were indicted by a federal grand jury in an alleged Medicaid fraud that is claimed to have raked in as much as $400 million to $600 million. Like the other defendants, ex-GC Thaddeus Bereday, 45,…

Mar 4, 2011 1:15 AM CST