Fraud

Fraud rarely occurs on its own, it is almost always part of a larger lawsuit issue. Whether is deception in the context of a private business transaction, or fraud on the marketplace in the sense of SEC and regulatory filings, fraud involves an intent to deceive that usually has other elements involved.

As business attorneys, we’ve successfully handled both sides of the fraud issue. Because we prepare every case for trial, we’re able to best advise our clients on how to proceed in fraud litigation.

By listening and sharing our experience with our clients, we are able to agree on a litigation strategy up front that serves our client’s best interest. Sometimes that strategy is as simply as winning the case at hand, but very often in fraud cases there are other, more important issues, for which the client needs to plan. For example, if you have a letter from the SEC, you should know that they rarely act on their own. Information to the SEC, or FINRA, or a host of other regulatory bodies often winds up in the possession of the Department of Justice. While you may not be concerned about responding to an SEC letter because the fines don’t concern you, know that in cases of fraud the U.S. Attorney is often monitoring the investigation with an eye towards jail time.

In more commercial cases of fraud, where there are only individuals or other businesses involved instead of governmental or quasi-governmental agencies, you often need to balance the need to resolve the matter with the potential for negative publicity that can come from a fraud case. As a plaintiff, that threat of publicity can often be a useful tool. Your attorney needs to know when it’s best to threaten publicity, and when you need to wield it.

The breadth of our experience in these cases results from having handled such a diverse set of cases in this field. Clients turn to us not only because of our ability to analyze fraud cases an exposure up front, but also because we’ve actually taken these cases to trial. Unlike many firms that settle every case, when the situation calls for it, our attorneys are experienced actually trying your case in court. Very often, the other side knows our record and that helps drive better settlements for our clients.

Our successful prior representations have included:

• A multi-million dollar international import/export business accused of fraudulently misappropriating a $1MM investment.
• An attorney accused of aiding his client’s $25MM fraud scheme.
• A business owner accused of a $13MM ponzi scheme.
• A financial professional sued by the SEC for his involvement with an $11MM prime bank scheme.
• A business shareholder sued by his partners for recovery of payments.
• Trust fund beneficiaries suing the trustee to recoup trust funds invested improperly in the trustee’s own business.
• Homeowners suing the builder and developer of their properties for fraudulent warranties and improper construction techniques.
• A seafood wholesaler suing a retailer for signing fraudulent promissory notes and refusing to pay the purchase price.
• The estate of a businessman accused of fraudulently selling ownership in $5MM worth of real estate tax liens.