[Updated through 2021] We have been closely following the saga of Barry Minkow, former convicted fraudster who allegedly found God and become a pastor. Unfortunately Minkow was again convicted of fraud and had to do his worshipping from a prison chapel. When we first published this story, Minkow has served 7 years in prison in […]
Class Action vs Pursuing Your Own Securities Fraud Claim (2.0)
Less than 24 hours after posting “Why Sue Your Broker,” one reader sent me a link to a Reuters article announcing the settlement of a class action against Ameriprise. The facts aren’t as important as the lesson – class actions often result in low recoveries. In the Ameriprise case, clients of Ameriprise Financial Inc. sued […]
Why Sue Stockbrokers if the Court Already Appointed a Receiver?
Frequently Ponzi scheme victims ask us, “Why should we sue our broker?” Often in a Ponzi scheme the court or a regulatory agency like the SEC will try to collect assets on behalf of victims who lost their money. Many clients believe that it is easier to wait for a court appointed receiver to collect […]
Divorce Fraud – How to Know if Your Spouse Is Hiding Assets
Most of our fraud recovery work involves dishonest business people, stockbrokers, lawyers and investment scams. Fraud, however, is not confined to the business and investment world. Sometimes it begins in the bedroom. Some of the nastiest cases involve divorces. Husbands and wives (mostly husbands) hiding assets before or during a divorce. Although we are not […]
Celebrity Money Manager Heads to Prison
Kenneth Starr, former money manager for Wesley Snipes, Al Pacino and Sylvester Stallone, was sentenced to 7 ½ years in prison. Last year Starr pled guilty to stealing over $30 million from his celebrity clients. The sentence is a bittersweet victory for me; we tried to alert authorities in January of 2008 that Starr was […]
Financial Crimes Against the Elderly
Crimes against the elderly are nothing new. Baby boomers are now nearing retirement and represent the fastest growing segment of economy. Unfortunately, few recognize that this population is uniquely vulnerable to financial exploitation. According to Investor Protection Trust, one in 5 Americans over the age of 65 has already been victimized. Actor Mickey Rooney recently […]
Insurance Bad Faith – When the Insurer Refuses to Pay – How to Sue Your Insurance Company and Win
[Updated through May 2020] We buy insurance to protect against lawsuits, property damage or economic damage. We insure or homes and cars. Businesses purchase insurance to protect from fires, floods, lawsuits and a host of other claims. Professionals often purchase malpractice insurance. We expect that in return for premium payments, the insurance company will be […]
Chinese Reverse Merger Scams – What Will They Think of Next?
[Post updated 2021] Hundreds of small Chinese companies have figured out a way to enter the U.S. stock market. Their secret? Reverse mergers. Are these companies scams? Many seem to think so. Chinese companies looking for a quick way to raise capital merge with a defunct or nearly defunct U.S. public company. For all practical […]
Alleged Fraudster’s Wife Living the High Life? – Third Party Recovery
[Post updated] Within a couple weeks of the breaking news about the collapse of Bernie Madoff’s financial empire, people started questioning the possible involvement of Bernie’s wife, Ruth Madoff. Feds say her posh New York City apartment and elegant lifestyle was all financed through Bernie’s crimes. Ruth cooperated with the feds and the receiver and […]
Three Types of Welfare Benefit Plan Frauds
[Post updated May 2021] When this post was first written in 2011, welfare benefit plans were a hot topic with the IRS. Huge penalties – up to $200,000 per year, criminal investigations, civil suits and many, many scams. If getting huge fines from the IRS wasn’t enough, several promoters of these plans managed to get […]
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