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"and retained the prestigious firm of DLA Piper" What are your thoughts on the pox on DLA Piper's house as a result of taking him on as a client? Doesn't it sp

"and retained the prestigious firm of DLA Piper" What are your thoughts on the pox on DLA Piper's house as a result of taking him on as a client? Doesn't it speak to their naiveté after reviewing the materials he was able to present? Or?

anigbrowl 14y ago
I wonder about that too. As a firm with a reputation to guard, I assumed they had vetted their client to some degree, and relied heavily on what I assumed was their good judgment in trying to guess the future progress of the case. I wonder if they simply got $ signs in their eyes?
- onetwothreefour 14y ago
  If he's presenting them with what looks to be evidence, then what's the problem? Hindsight is 20/20.
  - anigbrowl 14y ago
    Lawyers aren't paid to be credulous. Allowing oneself to be enlisted in a fraud is a severe failure of professional judgment.
grellas 14y ago
A black eye for the firm, for sure, but no lasting damage. Plausible story. Compelling legal position (if true). Big, fat and vulnerable defendant, with a ready-made villain at the center. And (I assume) a big, fat potential contingent fee in the offing. It likely proved irresistible for a Big Law firm trying to slog its way through a steep downturn. Still, it is bad judgment, as I see it, to take on a high-profile representation of a guy with one conviction already under his belt on what would seem to be a very opportunistic claim ("Yeah, I know innocent investors put in millions, and the company is now worth billions, but I am a ghost from six years’ past who can pull out a piece of paper saying I own more than half of it because of my $1,000 investment.") If you are going to step into this pile of whatever as a law firm, you had better do some strong due diligence to make sure it holds together. I suspect that wasn't done here, much to the firm's ultimate regret. That said, DLA has a great reputation and the bad effects of this will prove ephemeral, especially since it high-tailed it out of there once forensics showed it had been caught with its pants down. Highly embarrassing, but nothing more.
tomkinstinch 14y ago
DLA Piper is the world's largest lawfirm (by number of attorneys). They have other things to worry about.

anigbrowl 14y ago

I wonder about that too. As a firm with a reputation to guard, I assumed they had vetted their client to some degree, and relied heavily on what I assumed was their good judgment in trying to guess the future progress of the case. I wonder if they simply got $ signs in their eyes?

onetwothreefour 14y ago
If he's presenting them with what looks to be evidence, then what's the problem? Hindsight is 20/20.
- anigbrowl 14y ago
  Lawyers aren't paid to be credulous. Allowing oneself to be enlisted in a fraud is a severe failure of professional judgment.

grellas 14y ago

A black eye for the firm, for sure, but no lasting damage. Plausible story. Compelling legal position (if true). Big, fat and vulnerable defendant, with a ready-made villain at the center. And (I assume) a big, fat potential contingent fee in the offing. It likely proved irresistible for a Big Law firm trying to slog its way through a steep downturn. Still, it is bad judgment, as I see it, to take on a high-profile representation of a guy with one conviction already under his belt on what would seem to be a very opportunistic claim ("Yeah, I know innocent investors put in millions, and the company is now worth billions, but I am a ghost from six years’ past who can pull out a piece of paper saying I own more than half of it because of my $1,000 investment.") If you are going to step into this pile of whatever as a law firm, you had better do some strong due diligence to make sure it holds together. I suspect that wasn't done here, much to the firm's ultimate regret. That said, DLA has a great reputation and the bad effects of this will prove ephemeral, especially since it high-tailed it out of there once forensics showed it had been caught with its pants down. Highly embarrassing, but nothing more.

tomkinstinch 14y ago

DLA Piper is the world's largest lawfirm (by number of attorneys). They have other things to worry about.