New Developments

Fraud will never end. New variations on old schemes constantly emerge and re-emerge. Securities fraud, business fraud, and breach of fiduciary duty never seem to go out of style. Block & Landsman will never give up fighting new fraudulent schemes to protect the rights of its clients. A sample of new cases we are working on includes:

NFL Player Victim of Ponzi Scheme.
Much in the news lately, Ponzi schemes can be devastating to their victims even after they are discovered because the perpetrators are often “judgment-proof” because they have spent all of their ill-gotten gains. Block & Landsman looks beyond the primary violators to determine the identity of others who aided and abetted the scheme. Recently, we filed a lawsuit on behalf of a professional football player in the NFL who was a victim of a Ponzi scheme operated by a trusted advisor. The advisor convinced our client to invest in non-existent bonds based on promises of safety and high returns. Our client transferred money to an account the advisor opened, and without our client’s knowledge, the advisor withdrew his funds for her own benefit. We discovered that the bank where the account was opened had knowledge of the advisor’s troubled background and actively assisted in the scheme to defraud. The lawsuit against the bank is currently pending.

NFL Player Targeted for Massive Fraud by Long-Time Trusted Advisor.
Another professional football player in the NFL had a trusted advisor and close friend he first met in college. His advisor recommended a series of investments that would, he promised, give our client financial security once his playing days were finished. Instead, the advisor had our client put millions of dollars in private, illiquid and risky investments such as airplane hangers, oil-and-gas limited partnerships, a bingo casino, and similar deals. The web of fraud included the advisors, the client’s accountant and other professionals who benefited from the fraud. We have already obtained a settlement returning our clients money from one of these investments, and have filed a comprehensive lawsuit to recover the rest.

Top 50 Financial Advisory Firm Has Clients Stolen by Competitor.
We represent a financial advisory firm with more than $400 million under management that has had a large number of clients taken by a former employee who opened a competing firm while he was still employed by our client. We have filed claims against the competitor for violation of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act, the Illinois Consumer Fraud Act, and breach of contract.