Kelsoe, the Keegan Fund manager, pushed a bad investment — essentially making up the price — on the non-profit foundation, causing it to lose $48,000 and leaving nine terminally ill children with unfulfilled wishes. Nice guy. Stealing from a charity.
Monthly Archives: June 2011
Clarence Thomas, PLIVA v. Mensing, and the Plight of the Consumer
Posted in Consumer Protection, In the CourtsDoes Ms. Mensing, along with all other Americans who take generic prescription drugs, deserve less access to the courts simply because she spent less money on her prescriptions?
Walmart: Too Big To Sue, Too Big to Fail. Corporate America Makes it Look Easy
Posted in In the CourtsYesterday’s decision by America’s highest court is right out of the big business handbook, where week after week Chief Justice Roberts zealously advocates for the rich against the poor; just as a young freshman Senator from Illinois predicted at Justice Roberts’ confirmation hearings.
Clarence Thomas and Harlan Crow: A friendship with benefits?
Posted in In the CourtsWhere is the outrage? We are talking about a sitting Justice of the highest court in the land, accepting — directly or indirectly — millions of dollars in value from a leading partisan fund raiser.
Decision to Delay Derivatives Rules Spells Disaster
Posted in Consumer ProtectionA year ago, the regulators had all the momentum and political capital in the world. On the heels of a financial crisis that pitted every average American against the financial institutions that created the mess, rules were necessary and urgent. Sadly, that momentum has evaporated quicker than the Miami Heat’s, and it continues to dissipate–pun intended.
Johnny Reid Edwards and Bunny Mellon: A Match Made in Camelot
Posted in In the CourtsI’m told that the prosecutors have a rough road ahead. Edwards will have first-rate counsel and the statute he has violated was never applied to this precise context. But I wish the team from DOJ luck and I humbly believe they made the right decision bringing this case to a grand jury.
Dominique Strauss-Kahn and the Presumption of Innocence
Posted in In the CourtsA democracy must have an open justice system. The answer is not Stalinistic secret trials, but my friends in Europe make a valid point. The accused – although seemingly guilty of disgusting and shameful behavior – are entitled to the presumption of innocence until a jury finds otherwise.
Lance Armstrong and U.S. Postal’s Fraud on the Government
Posted in Weekend EditionIt pains me to put this prediction on the record, but here goes: Armstrong’s growing legal problems, stemming from accusations that he participated in systematic doping while riding to seven consecutive Tour de France titles, are going to overtake him in the end. He’s going down.
Robert Wilmers of M&T is America’s Best Bank Executive
Posted in Banks and Financial ServicesWilmers is a good banker with even better morals. He’s old school, valuing bankers’ reputations, which has dropped to “third worst” among the professions, according to Wilmers. Unlike most executives, Wilmers recognizes the moral hazard of major bank bailouts and the incentive to maximize risk–to the benefit of the big shots, and at the cost of Main Street.