Securities Lawyer Interviews

New York, NY: New York City super-lawyer Michael Spencer, best known for prevailing in a multi-billion dollar class-action suit against French media conglomerate Vivendi for deceiving investors, says he sees "opportunities" in Canada, and may prove to be a game changer in this country now that he has qualified to admission to the Ontario bar and is ready to robe up in Canada.

Los Angeles, CA: There are lots of roles a lawyer can play—litigator, arbitrator, discovery referee—but the one role Harvard law grad Denise Madigan likes best is the role of the mediator.

New York, NY: Facing allegations of improperly marketing Lehman Brothers Principal Protected Notes as safe investments, UBS is now dealing with FINRA arbitrations filed by investors who say they lost their money to the Lehman Brothers structured notes. Investors say they bought the Lehman Brothers Principal Protected notes from UBS, but in many cases, they were not told Lehman Brothers was connected to the investment.

Sante Fe, NM: Securities fraud seems to have dropped from the headlines, and Bernie Madoff is in safely locked up far from other peoples' money. But make no mistake, says Louis Straney, a super expert on fraud detection, litigation, prevention and control of financial misconduct—there is a never-ending stream of heartless pretenders intent on stealing your money.

Farmington Hills, MI: A flurry of class action settlement money has been arriving in the mail boxes of mutual fund holders. Investment advisor and attorney Rick Bloom, from Bloom Asset Management, says clients often come to him somewhat bewildered after receiving an unexpected check.

New York, NY: Investors who bought shares in the Toyota Motor Corporation thought they were buying into one of the most trusted and reliable carmakers in the world. Little did they know that Toyota had information to the contrary—information that in the view of veteran litigation lawyer Marvin Frank amounts to securities fraud.

Jupiter, FL: The first rule of thumb for investors is "open your monthly statements," says Marc Dobin, an experienced securities lawyer who has represented hundreds of unhappy investors and brokerage firms in securities fraud cases.

Charleston, SC: You can't help but notice attorney Badge Humphries' passion for securities law. Too bad the rest of us don't take such a keen interest—maybe then Ponzi scheme operators would have more trouble taking advantage of people. Humphries, an attorney with the firm of Motley Rice, has just certified a class action securities fraud case against Charles Schwab, one of the nation's most prestigious securities firms. The detailed suit alleges that Schwab ignored the South Carolina Uniform Securities Act and thereby helped a now imprisoned shyster take clients for an estimated $57 million.

Garden City, NJ: "What's remarkable about this," says New Jersey attorney Jerome Reisman, "is that each of these people considered Bernie Madoff to be their friend." Some friend! Even for a seasoned bankruptcy, creditor's rights and litigation lawyer like Reisman, the magnitude and gall of the Madoff securities swindle is astounding.

Pensacola, FL:One of the most appalling results of the subprime debacle is how it has effected millions of America's senior citizens. Florida attorney Peter Mougey has dozens and dozens of clients whose life savings have been seriously damaged or depleted by the unscrupulous practices of Wall Street investment firms that promised clients stable returns and then callously signed them up for high-risk mutual funds loaded with toxic mortgages and derivatives they did not understand. "Many of people who have been hurt by this are elderly," says Mougey. "My heart goes out to the widows in 70s, 80s even 90s whose husbands put aside money to take care of them and have now lost everything."