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Lerach got convicted - but he just doesn’t get it
By Lauren | February 14, 2008
Securities litigator Bill Lerach was sentenced to a mere two years in prison this week for paying kickbacks to potential plaintiffs in high stakes class-action lawsuits. For my non-lawyer readers, that’s a major no-no. Lawyers are required to zealously represent our clients, but we’re not supposed to go out and bribe people to bring lawsuits so that we can score big contingency fees. If potential clients have legitimate claims, they’re supposed to come to us.
Lerach grew rich from his share of the damages and settlements obtained from strike suits that hurt both big and small investors. To give you some idea of just how much money was involved, The Wall Street Journal reports that Lerach was forced to give up $8 million in disgorgements and penalties as part of his guilty plea, and was then fined an additional $250,000. Don’t feel too sorry for him, though – Lerach still stands to bring in as much as $50 million from the Enron class action settlement alone.
At Lerach’s sentencing hearing, U.S. District Judge John Walter observed that “this whole conspiracy corrupted [Lerach's] law firm and it corrupted it in the most evil way.” But did Lerach regret his actions? Apparently not. In an op-ed piece published by the Washington Post in November, Lerach wrote, “I’m on my way to prison because, in my zeal to stand up against this kind of corporate greed over the years, I stepped over the line.”
You can say that again, Bill. Take the next couple of years and think about it.
Topics: Legal Ethics |