Ex-lawyer faces sentencing for Ponzi scheme

Breaking Legal News

The sentence was more than the 40 years federal prosecutors had recommended for Rothstein, a disbarred lawyer who pleaded guilty to racketeering and fraud conspiracy charges in January.

He had faced up to 100 years in prison but his lawyer had asked U.S. District Judge James Cohn to give him no more than 30 years.

Rothstein, who turns 48 on Thursday, fled to Morocco as his fraud scheme collapsed in late October, apparently lured by the fact that the country has no extradition treaty with the United States. He voluntarily came back to Florida in early November and has been jailed since he surrendered to the FBI in December.

Upon his return, Rothstein cooperated with investigators unraveling his investment scheme, which prosecutors cited in asking that he be given a sentence of no more than 40 years. But Cohn tore into Rothstein for his "greed and arrogance" before handing down the tougher sentence, stressing that Rothstein had committed his fraud while serving as a licensed attorney.

Part of that fraud involved forging bogus court documents, making it especially egregious to a federal judge, Cohn said. "There can be no conduct more reviled," he said.

Related listings

  • US defends attending Sudan leader's inauguration

    US defends attending Sudan leader's inauguration

    Breaking Legal News 05/28/2010

    The Obama administration is defending its decision to send a representative to the inauguration of Sudan's president, who won re-election despite facing an international arrest warrant for war crimes.Omar al-Bashir was sworn in Thursday to another fi...

  • China to frame its first immigration law to attract foreigners

    China to frame its first immigration law to attract foreigners

    Breaking Legal News 05/24/2010

    China has kick-started a key process to frame its first immigration law to better manage immigrants as the world's fastest economy seeks to attract more foreigners to boost its development. Experts on migration have advised the government to learn fr...

  • Trial for Chandra Levy slaying suspect stays in DC

    Trial for Chandra Levy slaying suspect stays in DC

    Breaking Legal News 05/17/2010

    A judge has decided to keep the trial of a man charged in the killing of federal intern Chandra Levy in the District of Columbia.Attorneys for 28-year-old Ingmar Guandique (gwan-DEE'-kay) had argued he would not get a fair trial in Washington because...

New York Adoption, Foster Care Litigation and Family Law

Rosin Steinhagen Mendel is a law firm dedicated to serving our clients in New York City, the surrounding counties in southern New York State, and in New Jersey, in the areas of adoption, foster care litigation, and family law.

We represent our clients in all types of proceedings that include termination of parental rights, permanency hearings, custody hearings, guardianship, administrative proceedings, and adoption. Our goal is to provide each of our clients with the best possible representation in all aspects of their cases, and clients appreciate our careful analysis of individual cases, through preparation and attention to detail. For over 35 years, our attorneys have represented adoptive parents, birth parents, foster parents, children, foster care agencies, and adoption agencies. We represent our clients in all types of proceedings that include termination of parental rights, permanency hearings, custody hearings, guardianship, administrative proceedings, and adoption.

Our goal for our lawyers is to provide each of our clients with the best possible representation in all aspects of their cases, and clients appreciate our careful analysis of individual cases, through our preparation and attention to detail.

Business News

Cook County IL Trucking Lawyers We are one of Cook County's leading Workers’ Compensation firms. Illinois workers’ compensation, transportation lawyers. >> read
Santa Ana, CA Workers' Compensation Lawyers We are one of Orange County’s leading Workers’ Compensation firms. >> read