Ex-Partner at La. Law Firm Gets 15 Years in Bizarre $30M Fraud Case

In the final chapter of a bizarre case at one point involving counterclaims that read like the plot of a John Grisham novel, a former partner at a Louisiana law firm who admitted his guilt today was sentenced to a 15-year federal prison term for fraud and money laundering.

Ex-attorney James Perdigao also was ordered to make restitution of $23 million, concerning some $30 million that he stole from Adams and Reese and several clients of the prominent New Orleans-based law firm, according to U.S. Attorney Jim Letten.

Before sentencing Perdigao, U.S. District Judge Eldon Fallon lectured him about his misbehavior, reports the Associated Press.

"You let yourself down, you let your family down, you let your profession down, and you let your country down," the judge told Perdigao, who is now 46. "It's not aberrant behavior. For a decade you did this, not just one time."

Earlier, Perdigao apologized and admitted there was no factual basis for what the Times-Picayune describes as "eye-popping" allegations of corruption he earlier made against his former law firm and Letten's office.

The articles don't explain how Perdigao is expected to pay restitution. However, the Times-Picayune notes that Perdigao has admitted in a signed statement making $23 million in unauthorized withdrawals from Adams and Reese accounts between 1991 and October 2004, arranging to have the money wired first to a domestic account in his name and then to a Swiss bank.

Earlier coverage:

ABAJournal.com: "Indicted Lawyer Files RICO Suit Against Former Firm"

ABAJournal.com: "Bond Revoked for La. Lawyer Accused in $30M Law Firm Theft and Hacking Cases"

ABAJournal.com: "La. Lawyer Pleads Guilty in Bizarre $30M Law Firm Theft Case"