White Collar Crime

Former Greenberg Traurig Partner Gets 6 Years for Overbilling Client Suburb

Updated: A former Chicago partner of Greenberg Traurig pleaded guilty to theft today in Cook County Circuit Court and was sentenced to six years for overbilling a client municipality in the city’s suburbs. Mark McCombs pleaded guilty to a theft of over $100,000 and was taken into custody to begin…

Sep 13, 2011 2:11 AM CDT

Attorney Paul Bergrin’s Biggest Trial is About to Begin: His Own Racketeering Case

A high-profile New Jersey criminal defense lawyer is about to take on the biggest trial of his career–his own. A federal judge in Newark today agreed that attorney Paul Bergrin could defend himself against a 33-count murder conspiracy and racketeering indictment, although U.S. District Judge William Martini discouraged him from…

Sep 13, 2011 12:31 AM CDT

Rajaratnam Calls Requested 20 Years ‘Grotesquely Severe,’ Says Insider Trading Definition Not Clear

Interviewed by a probation officer for a presentence investigation report, a hedge fund co-founder recently convicted in the biggest insider-trading case in decades said he still isn’t clear on the concept of what is and isn’t permitted, reports Bloomberg. “In my own mind, the line between permissible ‘detective work’ and…

Sep 12, 2011 5:47 PM CDT

Citing $350K Bling, NY Judge Gives Ohio Lawyer 7 to 21 Years in $110M ‘Pump and Dump’

Contending that his legal training had not prepared him to recognize a so-called pump-and-dump securities scheme, an Ohio lawyer today tried to persuade a New York judge today not to jail him. But the argument was unsuccessful: James Margulies, 47, was sentenced to a 7- to 21-year prison term for…

Sep 9, 2011 7:45 PM CDT

Tax Court Finds Shelters Promoted by Former Seyfarth Lawyer Are Invalid

The U.S. Tax Court ruled Thursday that the tax benefit transactions touted to clients by Chicago-based lawyer John Rogers are invalid. Rogers was sued by the U.S. Justice Department last year to prevent him from promoting the deals, dubbed Distressed Asset Debt and Distressed Asset Trust tax shelters by the…

Sep 2, 2011 8:54 PM CDT

Now-Disbarred Lawyer Who Helped Top Partner Scott Rothstein Defraud Client of $57M Gets 2 Years

Back when both Howard Kusnick and Scott Rothstein were well-regarded and seemingly successful partners in a profitable South Florida law firm, Rothstein asked for a favor, and Kusnick, who had practiced with Rothstein for many years, complied. He wrote a letter that Rothstein used—along with forged Palm Beach County court…

Sep 2, 2011 5:36 PM CDT

Lawyer Convicted of Extortion for Allegedly Offering False Client Testimony for $107K

A California lawyer was convicted yesterday of extortion and obstruction of justice for allegedly seeking $107,000 in exchange for a client’s favorable false testimony concerning the target of a grand jury investigation of immigration fraud. Alfred Nash Villalobos, 46, could get as much as 30 years when he is sentenced…

Sep 1, 2011 6:50 PM CDT

App-solutely Perilous? Security of Mobile Apps Spurs Concern

Acquisitive fingers are wirelessly downloading millions of apps into smartphones and tablet computers, with the promise of new, easy and efficient ways of communicating. But it seems that with every advance comes a problem, and claims are being made that downloaded apps may also be carrying security risks that could…

Sep 1, 2011 6:50 AM CDT

High-Profile Defense Attorney Accused of Practicing Law in RICO Enterprise May Represent Himself

Updated: Once a New Jersey criminal defense lawyer best-known for his trial work on behalf of major gang figures and rap artists, Paul Bergrin has been jailed since 2009 on charges that he ran his law practice as part of a criminal racketeering enterprise. Allegedly, the former prosecutor even helped…

Aug 31, 2011 1:55 AM CDT

Criminal Defense Lawyer Accused of Hoarding $1.3M in Client Payments to Evade Income Tax

A Maryland criminal defense lawyer is facing a federal tax evasion case after allegedly hoarding $1.3 million in cash payments from clients over a six-year period in order to conceal his income. Federal authorities found $1.5 million in two safes when they raided the home and law office of Stanley…

Aug 30, 2011 11:50 PM CDT

Any Profit From Ex-Detroit Mayor’s Memoir Will Help Pay His $860K Restitution, Appeals Court Rules

A book written by the former mayor of Detroit, Kwame Kilpatrick, apparently will have to be a best-seller before he sees any substantial profit from writing it. A Michigan appellate court today upheld an earlier Wayne County Circuit Court ruling that any money Kilpatrick makes will be put in an…

Aug 30, 2011 10:55 PM CDT

Lawyer, Who Is a Pa. Senator and Sister of a Top Judge, Is Charged with Perjury re Alleged Fake Docs

A Pennsylvania lawyer who is currently a Republican state senator and is the sister of a state supreme court justice has been criminally charged for allegedly faking evidence in an earlier political corruption case that resulted in a mistrial earlier this year. Sen. Jane Orie, 49, faces obstruction, perjury, forgery…

Aug 30, 2011 4:59 PM CDT

Jury Says Retired Lawyer Jailed in $30M Client Art-Theft Case Must Pay $3.1M to Homeowner

A retired Massachusetts lawyer who served as what a judge called a “glorified fence” in a former client’s record-breaking 1978 theft of major art works from a private home has been hit with a $3.1 million judgment. Robert Mardirosian, 77, is serving a seven-year federal prison term after being convicted…

Aug 24, 2011 9:02 PM CDT

Wis. Lawyer Accused of Stealing $542K in Foreclosure Refunds by Filing Court Docs for Non-Clients

A Wisconsin lawyer has been criminally charged with theft of at least $10,000 by fraud for allegedly stealing $542,000 over a five-year period by falsely claiming to represent individuals to whom refunds of surplus funds were due in mortgage foreclosure cases. Thomas E. Bielinski, 52, allegedly filed documents in Milwaukee…

Aug 24, 2011 5:15 PM CDT

Inmate Hires Banner Plane to Call Attention to His Delayed Case

A Manhattan inmate awaiting trial for his alleged role in an ID theft ring hired a banner plane to protest his long incarceration. Vadim Vassilenko paid $1,250 to the pilot who displayed his message on Tuesday, the New York Post reports. It read: “V. VASSILENKO JAILED 5+ YRS — NO…

Aug 24, 2011 4:03 PM CDT