20 Things We Can Learn From 'The Scott Rothscheme Scandals'

by Norm Kent

1. Greed is not Good.

2. Appearance is not Everything.

3. Power is not what it is cracked up to be.

4. If it looks too good to be true, it is in fact not true, and we knew this already did we not?

5. If a guy running a law firm signs his memos, 'Love ya kidzzzzz' maybe there is something very wrong at the top, and big shot lawyers should have seen this coming. Somehow I don't see William Scherer signing his memos to his firm thusly.

6. Lots of very wealthy people/investors can be very stupid. Ed Morse, come on down.

7. WC Fields was right when he said there is a sucker born every minute. If he had lived in South Florida instead of Philly, he might have said one is born every 20 seconds. Selling settlements on sex discrimination cases? There not being enough pineapples in the pineapple juice? 23 million for an interior decorating scheme? And people think I smoke bad weed?

8. Real Mafia guys lay low and do not show off their watches, cars, or homes or tell people they are part of the Mafia.

9. Brittany, I was right the first time when I told you only 'Schmucks' threaten reporters. Should have known right there and then he was covering and hiding something. But think what kind of idiot he must really be, knowing for years how he had done what he had done and he would nevertheless continue to bring such limelight and attention to himself.

10. People who comment on blogs can be incisive and informative but even more are hateful and ruthless.

11. And this one I learned from others accused of similar acts: "As long as you flash money and pay the bills, no one cares and everyone will look the other way."

12. There are no designer jeans or Cuban cigars in jail. Or reporters to call and scream at.

13. Doing favors for your boss sometimes means not doing a favor for yourself. When the illegal campaign contributions and kickbacks are unveiled; when the lawyers on staff who covered for Rothstein are exposed, there will be more ruined careers and Florida Bar cards torn up.

14. Just because you have your picture taken with a sports star does not make you one. Let me ask you this: do you think Alonzo Mourning had a picture of Scott Rothstein in his living room?

15. 'Bling' is blinding whether you are wearing the jewelry or stuffing it in your pocket because someone gave it to you.

16. Politicians are whores who will do anything for money, including knowingly and willingly circumventing campaign contribution laws by taking donations that violate the purpose and spirit of the statutes. Like the $500 maximum contribution. Please! How many of our elected office holders or losing candidates willingly took $500 from each of the 20 corporations solely owned by SR to thus evade mandatory campaign limits?

17. J. Herbert Burke. Doug Danziger. Scott Cowan. Josephus Eggleston, I presume. The Alderdices. Gold Bullion. Sheriffs past. County Commissioners present. School Board members. Judges. Lobbyists. Ponzi Scheme City. The good old Port Commission with lavish parties. Union officials.Stop looking at the Court brooms in Miami. Broward is really corrupt too. Has Been. Will Be.

18. Too many people do not want less corruption.

They just want more of a chance to be part of it.

19. No amount of money today is worth your freedom tomorrow.

20. The 'right' thing is not to do the wrong thing in the first place.

Then you do not wind up as a Defendant:

http://media.miamiherald.com/smedia/2009/12/01/12/Rothstein_Information.source.prod_affiliate.56.pdf

21-30 Feel free to enter in the comments section your own proverbs...

My Last and Final Scott Rothscheme Story

Etherus, The God of Excess

Today the Sun Sentinel reports that a group of rich investors have sued Scott Rothscheme for being scammed:

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/broward/fort-lauderdale/fl-rothstein-bankruptcy-20091120,0,255283.story

Then there is the DBR story about how he sold someone on a settlement scam involving there not being enough pineapple in the pineapple juice so Dole was willing to Dole out 150 million to not get exposed. And the list goes on. No doubt that when Scott traded baseball cards as a kid, he would trade a Don Mossi for a Mickey Mantle.

To be sure, an abundance of legal issues remain unresolved. Will you, Mr. Rothscheme, get a bond? Will you be stuck with a public defender? Will a Nebbia hearing strip you even of your lawyer? How much time will you get? Will you bring others down with you? Will the monies be recovered? But I think I am through blogging about this punk.

1. He is a nefarious crook who scammed, hurt, deceived, and maybe destroyed the lives of lots of good people, including those who trusted him most. There is no telling just yet what the residual emotional and material impact of his schemes will be upon those around him.

2. He was greedy, self-centered, self-indulgent, and while outwardly seeming to generously endow noble charities he was a thief stealing from his friends, and ultimately betrayed and embarrassed those charitable agencies who aligned themselves with him.

3. By bringing down a law firm, he has wreaked enormous pain and hardship to hundreds of clients and compromised, perhaps fatally, their cases and claims, while at the same time stealing monies from trust accounts that the Florida Bar will never be able to adequately pay back.

4. Calling the media to announce he 'made a mistake' and is going to 'do the right thing' and insure that 'no one will suffer' while 'everyone is going to be paid back' tells me he is insanely delusional or worse, trying to carry the scam one step further by attempting to put himself in the best possible light for that moment he steps in front of a sentencing judge.

Ultimately, Scott's demise reminds me of a Twilight Zone episode. Seeking immortality and fame, a vicious criminal is granted one wish. He requests and receives 'eternal life.' Egotistical and brazen with his newfound prowess, he pushes his wife out a window of their high rise to her death. He defies the prosecutor and scoffs at him as he asks for the death penalty, knowing he can never die. But to his shock and chagrin, a fate he never imagined, the judge does not sentence him to death. Instead, the man who can never die is sentenced to life in prison. An eternity behind bars.

Scott Rothstein, for what you have done, you have achieved finally the ultimate notoriety you had sought. You are a true superstar, getting more press than even Shaq or Dwayne Wade, the studs you surrounded yourself with. But they are on the playing field still, and you have been thrown out of the game.

Like Etherus, the Santharian God of Excess, you have drank too much from the potion of lust and desire. You have immersed yourself in the waters of treachery and seduction. And so you have aligned yourself with the Alderdice Brothers and the Gold Bullion Exchange, with Bernard Madoff and his yachts. Your spirit will indeed live on. You will not be forgotten. We promise.

Before it closes, we will all gather and have a drink in your memory, at Bova Prime. But you dear sir, won't be there to see it. You instead will be doing an eternity, a lifetime, behind bars. That is your legacy. Proud now, superstar?

Mayor's Sister Cuts Down Big Tobacco

Our Broward Law Blog has been covering the unfolding of the Big Tobacco lawsuits, noting how Judge Jeffrey Streitfeld could be busy for the next 300 years as he is assigned to 3000 of them. But to the credit of the litigators involved, the cases are going forward. A journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step.

Legal experts predict that many of these suits will now gain momentum in Florida after a Fort Lauderdale jury ordered Philip Morris USA to pay $300 million to a former smoker who needs a lung transplant. To the surprise of many, the main plaintiff turned out to be the 61 year old sister, Cindy Naugle, of our own former Mayor of 18 years, Jim Naugle.

If it survives an appeal, the verdict would be the nation’s largest award of damages to an individual suing a tobacco. But Big T is not rushing out to cut a check. They will appeal, and as a general rule have absorbed product liability suits as little more than a cost of doing business since the seven biggest companies agreed to pay $206 billion in a master settlement agreement with 46 states in 1998.

From a legal standpoint, Florida, despite being one of those states, had a major legal ruling in 2006 which lowered a plaintiff’s burden of proof against a tobacco company. But it also created legal havoc.

The Florida Supreme Court rejected a singular class-action verdict and a $145 billion award to plaintiffs, saying smokers would have to sue individually for every case. So 9,000 cases have lined up across the state. That was the bad news.

On the other hand, the high court held that plaintiffs would not have to prove some key elements that had been upheld in the first stage of the class action: that nicotine is addictive, that smoking causes diseases, and that cigarette companies fraudulently hid those facts. Smokers in other states are still suing cigarette makers, he said, but they have higher legal hurdles. The Florida Supreme Court ruling is under appeal in federal court.

The real issue is the human one that gets lost in the legal process. You have a sensational verdict only because you have a very ill patient, one living with emphysema and needing a lung transplant she cannot afford. For the family it is about love and life. Will their sister and loved one survive the litigation and appeals? Will she get a chance to get the help and medicine she needs?

Big Tobacco’s lawyers have suggested that its industry could afford several hundred million dollars a year in legal losses if it had to. “That is a financially manageable issue,” he said. So to no one’s surprise, for them, it is not about Cindy Naugle’s life. It is about their pocketbook.

Welcome to corporate America.

Finally, here is something I did not know about. It seems there is a second round of class action cases evolving out of smokers’ claiming fraud and damages from past marketing of so-called light cigarettes.

Those products have been shown to be no less harmful than regular cigarettes because smokers inhale them more deeply. Congress, in landmark tobacco legislation earlier this year, prohibited the use of the terms “light,” “low” or “mild” in all cigarette labeling and marketing, effective June 22, 2010.

I owned a little newsstand on East Las Olas for a year. Nothing was more profitable then cigarettes, and nothing sold more than Marlboro Lights. I don’t know how they will market them next year, but I have always hated cigarette smoking, and never understood what is attractive or alluring about it. Except, if I believed the early ads, I would have been a great horseback rider, surfer, ladies man, and all around stud. But Big Tobacco never let up and kept on lying and lying in the face of so much scientific information to the contrary.

Cigarette ads made you think smoking was God’s way of uplifting you to success and being superhuman. The thing is so did Miss Cleo once try to tell all of us that if we only got her psychic advice our worlds would change too. And in the old black and white TV westerns, shown in the 1950’s there was always a snake oil salesman with a black hat and travelling carriage. That does not mean Cindy Naugle and millions of Americans were not defrauded. It is just that, well, buyer beware. Caveat Emptor.

Picking Up Pieces of the Past on a Wednesday Morning

The most important thing for me to do late on a Tuesday nite is to remember to move the garbage cans curbside for Wednesday morning pickup, but in the meantime..

I have joked recently in my blogs about how Bernie Madoff went to Hofstra College, my alma mater, and how weird it is that his class ring from 1960 was auctioned off by federal authorities Saturday in New York City. Never thought a class ring from the Harvard of Hempstead would be worth so much…then I spent yesterday afternoon reading about a Lawrence High School classmate I used to play stickball with at School #6 on Branch Boulevard when we were like ten years old. 40 years ago, in 1968, he was voted most likely to succeed by his classmates. But in 2008 what he succeeding in getting was a 20-year sentence for setting up a $400 million dollar hedge fund fraud, using his law firm as a tool. Hello, Scott Rothstein. Here is the article about Dreier, who also appeared on 60 minutes, about the brazen scam. Greed greed Greed. Kills ya'.

http://www.vanityfair.com/business/features/2009/11/marc-dreier200911

One passage in the article jumps out at me which could be a telling factor:

His epiphany, Dreier remembers, came in the summer of 2003, during a long walk he took on the beach near his vacation home, in Westhampton Beach, New York. He experienced a moment of clarity, he says, in which he saw the path he needed to take; unfortunately, it was a path that would lead to his downfall.

It happened one day when he found himself staring at a palatial beachfront home. His own house was inland. He had always wanted one right on the beach. It was at that moment, Dreier says, that he came to two conclusions. He would buy himself a big house on the beach. And he would get the money by dramatically expanding his firm, now renamed Dreier L.L.P. Dreier knows how ridiculous this sounds, that his criminal behavior can be traced to his yearning for a better beach house.

“I wanted to just, well, appease myself,” he says. “Well, not appease myself. Gratify myself … I was very, very caught up in seeing the criteria of success in terms of professional and financial achievement, which I think was a big part of the problem. But I thought it would make me happy. And I wanted to be happy again.”

Elsewhere, the news for the first amendment in Miami was not grand as the Supreme Court chose not to review the case of the book, Vamos a Cuba, banned by the School Board. I have written about it before, but here is the story on the front page of the Miami Herald:. Definitely my sentiments are with the ACLU and Howard Simon who commented that: ‘What the Supreme Court did was to give the School Board the power to cleanse the library shelves of various books `That sets a dangerous precedent.'’ Yup, it does. By the way, if you have any extra money to donate somewhere here at the end of the year, not that anyone does, the ACLU could use some.

Political correctness in schools, a very unhealthy thing. Speaking of which, it was nice to see Buddy Nevins- on his blog -back off of his totally unjustifiable criticism of Kevin Tynan. A lawyer who represents lawyers, with a passion for integrity and who served the Florida Bar as an Ethics Prosecutor, I think you can expect a new era of honesty on that school board, with a bulldog for fairness serving thereupon. And speaking of books, I have to get to writing a piece on my friend Tom Hayden, who I got to spend the day with in Miami after he lectured at the Miami Book Fair, catching up on politics and our mutual passion for baseball. It is hard to believe he is nearly 70, I am 60, and it has been 40 years since Grant Park and Chicago. Here is a link to Tom's new book, which, unfortunately, though hundreds showed up for his SRO talk, none of his books were shipped for him to sign- ouch;

http://www.paradigmpublishers.com/Books/BookDetail.aspx?productID=215088

Also at the festival, with a line out the door early Saturday morning, and overwhelming popular acclaim, some dude named Al Gore.

I also saw that a top DEA agent I have criticized in a blog about his drug war righteousness may soon be out of legal trouble. Magistrate Robin Rosenbaum has said the charges against him should be dismissed…Noticed also that the driver responsible for reckless driving and the fatal crash on I-95 Monday morning has tickets for careless and reckless driving from earlier this summer. How not surprising… So who is more of a threat to the public safety, that dude or the young San Francisco pitcher, Tim Lincecum, likely to win the Cy Young award again tomorrow for the second year in a row, busted for 3 grams of pot in Northern Washington. Hell, in northern California guys have that much residue in their carpet. Anyway, just did another legalization piece this week online for Counterpunch about how the American Medical Association has altered its stance on the rescheduling of marijuana from a Schedule 1 substance drug with no medical use to a lesser standard. Nice of them to catch up with the rest of the world.http://counterpunch.org/kent11162009.html

Was asked yesterday how I feel about the collapse of the national gay media in local markets with the bankruptcy of the Blade newspaper chain. It means the paper I founded ten years ago this month, and sold to them in 2004, is now extinct. I feel devastated, is how I feel, and I am absolutely sure there needs to be credible GLBT journalism in the South Florida community. Though there was a nice piece in the South Florida Business Journal and the Miami Herald, I posted about it on another one of my blogs: http://www.nationalgaynews.blogspot.com/

Later, and thanks for stopping by.

Breaking News: Scott Rothstein to Serve Tuesday as Guest Auctioneer at Lauderdale's Bernard Madoff Yacht Auction

Okay, so I took some liberty with the headline. Shoot me.

Pictured above, for your bidding pleasure, is a Bernie Madoff yacht, presently anchored and to be auctioned off here in Fort Lauderdale on Tuesday morning. While you are checking it out, Scott Rothstein's boat is also there, in a new federal wing called 'Ponzi Row.'

Meanwhile, Bernard Madoff's name gave extra value to his onetime possessions Saturday as they were auctioned for more than $1 million in New York. The auction conducted under the eye of U.S. marshals at the New York Sheraton Hotel and Towers brought in twice the expected amount, The Wall Street Journal reported. The 200 lots of possession once owned by Madoff and his wife, Ruth, included Rolex watches and diamond jewelry along with clothing and old yard signs.

Some of the Rolexes failed to sell. But an online bidder offered $14,500 for Bernard Madoff's personalized Mets jacket, almost 30 times its low estimate, and his class ring from Hofstra University, with a low estimate of $240, went for $6,000. Now this bugs me. No class ring from Hofstra is worth $6,000.

I am, of course, an alumni of Hofstra University. Graduated the school in 1971. The law school in 1975. Mr. Madoff went there before we became a university. He actually graduated from 'Hofstra College' in 1960. I am not too proud of this allegiance. Would have preferred my school getting written about if it was about a national championship.

I suppose he is now our most famous alum, and indeed was serving on our Board of Trustees when his billion dollar scam went public. Now he may be serving as a trustee but if so, it is in a federal prison. Guessing we don't have any special plaques to give out to him right about now. But I am willing to bet one of my fellow alumni bought up his ring. Probably to bury it.

Three boats and a Mercedes go on the block Tuesday here in Fort Lauderdale. Does anyone doubt if Scott were not about to be indicted, and his schemes were still not known to the public, he might in fact have been one of the bidders, parking that Madoff Mercedes right in front of Bova Prime? How the pendulum swings.

Think though, about this. A week ago I did a light hearted column about how the feds will have to raise monies to pay back Scott's investors by selling the autographed memorabilia from his office on E Bay. Guess what? There is a lot of truth in humor. When you see they are selling the shoes belonging to Ruth Madoff, and Bernie Madoff's class ring from 50 years ago, can Dan Marino's and Al Lamberti's autographed picture with Scott Rothstein be far behind?

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/business/sfl-madoff-boats-auction-090909,0,2535443.story

How Can Smart Rich People Have Been So Stupid?

I go back to my column the other day, the one where I asked again how can smart people be so stupid? How does a guy who becomes a millionaire businessman selling cars fall for a scheme where he sues someone for a million dollars and then believes that his attorney got a $23 million dollar judgment which he can only collect if he puts up $57 million? I mean, really folks, help me out here. How do you get so rich being so stupid?

So today's reveations from the FBI suggest Mr. Morse was not alone in his lack of wisdom.

Number One. Sayeth the FBI: Attorney Scott Rothstein's alleged investment scam may exceed $1 billion dollars in victims' investments. It is no longer Madoff Lite. It is Made Off South. And they need your help.
They set up a hot line and email address for you to contact them if you too have been burned by this forest fire. As usual, like most government e-mails, the email address requires a doctoral address to access, but here it is:.
Rothstein.Investment@ic.fbi.gov.
The number: 1-800-CALL-FBI, or 1-800-225-5324. Select the "Rothstein Rosenfeldt Adler'' option, which is Option 3. If Miss Cleo answers, you are in trouble. How is she doing anyway?

Number Two. Rothstein is believed to have run the scam from his offices at the Rothstein Rosenfeldt Adler law firm, which is going into involuntary bankruptcy. I feel for the lawyers, but I am concerned and state again how pathetic it is that in the sea of writers and flood of articles coming out of this disaster no one is writing about the hundreds if not thousands of clients left in the lurch. I just wish I could figure out what to do for them, but how do you call people you can't reach. I hope they have the sense to be seeking out new counsel.

Number Three. It would be a good thing if the Chief Judges in the tri county area issued administrative orders tolling legal responsibilities and time compliant mandates within those cases and claims that are being prosecuted by RRA lawyers. At the same time, each judge with an RRA case ought to hold an emergency status conference with notice to the clients to appear.

Number Four, law firm co-founder Stuart Rosenfeldt stepped down as its chief executive officer Wednesday, handing off full control to court-appointed receiver Herbert Stettin, a retired Miami-Dade judge.
Bankruptcy attorneys hired by the firm said at a Thursday court hearing that they will consent to the involuntary petition for bankruptcy filed by creditors earlier this week.

"In plain English, this means the bankruptcy will move forward," Stettin said.

But what Judge Stettin does not make clear is that a US District Court Judge may appoint someone other than him to supervise the bankruptcy and act as a trustee, which would divest the respected but retired Dade jurist as the man to go to in this mess. We will see if the parties work that out.

Number Five. If you read all the other bloggers covering this, especially The Daily Pulp with Bob Norman, there is a clamor to demand Scott Rothstein's arrest. Or at least an emergency suspension from the Florida Bar. I don't know about you, but I don't see him taking any cases right now. Anyway, the FBI said they do not want to be pressured into an arrest until they have adequately formulated all their charges, and put their ducks in order. How many people though were sitting ducks? The FBI now says thousands.

I will tell you this if I were the judge whose order Scott Rothstein purportedly forged, I don't need the FBI or anyone else at the Florida Bar to tell me what to do. You call Mr. Nurik, Rothstein's counsel, and you inform him that a 'Rule to Show Cause Hearing Why He Should Not Be Held in Contempt' is being held at 4 o'clock this afternoon, and you lock his ass up sua sponte.

Scott, I have to tell you this, I just don't know who was dumber, you in thinking you could pull this off forever, or all the people around you for not demanding a better accounting of your reckless flamboyance. You will need those watches in the picture above. You are going to have plenty of time on your hands.

But this column really isn't so much about you.

I still want to know how could so many rich people who were supposedly so smart manage to be so stupid?

Here is the fake order, courtesy of the Sun Sentinel or South Florida Lawyers or one of the many bloggers uncovering this massive fraud. In my 35 years as a lawyer, litigating everything from minor misdemeanors to murder in the first degree, I have never seen such an outrageous act of misconduct by another attorney, and the courts and authorities have an obligation to act at once and without any further hesitation.

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/media/acrobat/2009-11/50440241.pdf

Should Scott Rothstein Get A Bond When Arrested?

My words for Scott have so far been tempered and restrained.

Today they are harsh. The meteor has landed. Flamed out.

Yesterday was a special day for those oozing Scott Rothstein juices. So if you are going to interview him, now would be the time. There are no cameras or cocktails in Federal Court.

First, he who has been purportedly secreted and hidden by the Feds shows up at the Capital Grille for a Martini but winds up in a You Tube interview with New Times investigative reporter Bob Norman. Special.

Second, decidedly uncomfortable with the negative stream of publicity he has been getting, and clearly against his attorney’s advice, Scott Rothstein chooses to give an ‘exclusive’ interview to Channel 7 reporter Rosh Lowe. Foolish.

Third, while Scott is chatting, Feds are seizing. Legal authorities, armed with warrants have now entered his home and carted out reams of legal documents to be sure. But that was the sideshow. The trailers which landed on his properties carried away Rolls Royces and sportscars. His boat was taken to the same marina where the Feds brought Bernie Madoff’s a couple of months ago. Ouch!

Fourth, in court, lawyers for investors of his now unraveling Ponzi scheme have filed suits demanding the property be held in trust for them, which suggests they will have to do battle with his former law partners that want the money for themselves. If the money came from firm accounts, who gets it first, the lawyers, the trusts, or the investors in a scheme oiled by firm funds?

Yes, this is all really happening. But now that he has spoken to the press, there is a few things I would like to say to Scott, directly.

Number one. Scott you told the reporters yesterday you made a mistake. No, Scott, you did not make a ‘mistake.’ You, sir, committed a crime. If I could slap you in the face, and alert your moral compass, a mistake is an inadvertent and unintentional lapse where maybe you err for a moment and correct course. A ‘mistake’ is not when you consciously and deliberately over a course of time commit acts which are nefarious, fraudulent, deceptive, harmful, and outright criminal while rewarding yourself at the expense of others.

Number two. Scott you told a reporter yesterday you wanted to do the ‘right thing,’ so you came back to set things straight. Let’s make this clear. The ‘right thing’ would have been not to do the ‘wrong thing.’ Please don’t lavish yourself with false praise. You have not 'manned up.' You have chosen to face the music and do the honorable thing after getting caught, which was inevitable. You are simply doing what you had an obligation to be doing all along. That is better than leaving us a suicide note from Morocco, but this is no reason for self-congratulatory lauding.

Number three. Scott you told reporters yesterday that you had ‘very few friends left.’ Scott, your true friends and family will stand by you in a time of crisis because they love you for who you are and what you have been, regardless of how many toys and boats and big shots you surrounded yourself with. Those people you do not have to worry about it. Those are the people who did not sign autographed plaques in your office. Those are the people whose pictures you placed on your desk because you love them and they love you. Autographs not required.

Scott, even you had to know many of the people you have circled the wagons with the past few years were there for jobs and a never-ending cash flow and cycle of good times you poured their way. They were never there for you. They were there for your money, your blitz, your flash. You took them all for a ride and they went along willingly, so suffer them not. They will survive. Leeches are bloodsuckers who will find their way to other hosts.

The thing is Scott many of your partners and associates in the law firm are decent lawyers who joined with you because they believed you were honest and real and genuine. You have stained their lives forever, tarred the South Florida legal community unimaginably, and betrayed the trust of honorable colleagues and professionals who befriended you. Guess what, you do not deserve them as friends.

You can’t pay back the scarlet letter they will now wear, the jobs they will not have, the clients that will not go near them. Do you really think that when my personal injury case goes to trial I am going to want even one of the jurors to remotely think one of your firm’s named partners is my attorney? Do you think it is going to be easy for them to list on their resume they spent the last few years at RRA without someone laughing behind their back?

Number four. Scott, you said you want to pay ‘every penny back’ to everyone who was wronged except the people who ‘participated in this.’ So now the bank robber is determining which of the account holders will be repaid, huh? Does not work that way. The Feds, the Receivers, the Trustees in Bankruptcy, they will decide that for you. Your decision making days are over. From what it sounds like, they will be diving for dollars in a pile of pennies. What were you thinking?

Number five. They are taking this stuff from you with a warrant. You are not ‘voluntarily’ giving it back. Because, just a friendly reminder again, you did not make a ‘mistake.’ You do know this, right? You are not fooling yourself? I say this because you apparently, much to the regret of many of those of us who liked you, have committed several major crimes and it is more than likely you will now go directly to jail. You will not pass 'Go'. You will not collect $200. You played the game Monopoly and lost.

Number six. You do understand the major immediate legal issue you are facing upon your arrest is whether you should you be entitled to a pre trial bond. I suspect if the financial fraud is anywhere near the allegations the government is making you may be denied one. They are going to argue you fled the country once, that there are illegally gotten gains secreted in multiple venues, and that you orchestrated a criminal scheme which had been running for years; that you have threatened to harm yourself, and that you could be facing life in prison. You are going to say that you came back, you are trying to right the wrongs you have done, and that you have strong ties to the community. And you need to be free to help the government restore those who have lost funds. That is noble and righteous. Thank you. But who is going to trust you now to make it right? Good luck.

It is going to be a tough call for a judge to decide what to do, and you may be facing some of your last days as a free man. Ever. You gave so much to so many and you could have done so much more but instead you have taken everything away from yourself. Sadly, something you will only come to realize at sentencing, when you are cuffed and walked down that lonely corridor to a federal prison, you are the worst victim of your own fraud. You will suffer more than anyone else. Because you have sold your freedom for some material things that don't last anyway.

The glorious breath of an ocean breeze, the sounds of laughter at a ballpark, the cool air of independence on a ski slope, your own bed, all that you have given up. For what? To sit in a fancy car? Please.

I hardly had an extensive relationship with you Scott, but do you remember our last conversation when you said you were thinking of leaving the home you had just barely moved into on Harbor Isle because Wayne Huizenga had put his up for sale; that maybe you wanted that? And I commented, 'Scott have you forgotten what it is like to just live in a dorm room in college? At the end of the nite, you put your head down on one pillow in one bed, and what else do you need outside of a roof, a partner, and maybe a dog by your side?'

You have given that all up, man. Family. Friends. Your dignity. For what, for what, a brief, foolish roller coaster ride in the sun? That same sun which bronzes also burns. And you have baked yourself but good.

Ten Signs People Are Drooling Excessively over Scott Rothstein

Lust. Licentiousness. Lewdness. Smut. As Tom Lehrer said in a musical piece years ago, we love it. Right now we are oozing in it. Drooling over the Scott Rothstein crash and burn. Like gawkers on a highway we are reveling in every moment. Here are ten indicators of how we are overdoing it.

1. On Browardbeat.com, Buddy Nevins does a feature on how Rothstein owes a back due exterminator bill. The guy allegedly steals a hundred million and we are worried about a bill to the guy who killed ants in his house?

2. Tarnished by his now stained association with Rothstein, and attempting to save his already purloined soul, Roger Stone is pleading to the world that he had everything figured out a year ago. Oh, really? If that was the case Roger, you think not telling anyone about it this whole time makes you look good? Come on man, Nixon is dead, try being honest.

3. Kendall Coffey takes us on a public video tour of Rothstein’s office to show us pictures of his sports paraphernalia. He calls the office atypically ‘suspicious’ and ‘secretive’. Rothstein’s eccentricities were secretive? Please! He flaunted his ostentatiousness more than gay queens on Castro Street, from his bodyguards to his private police force, and everyone knew about it and no one cared, as long as the money kept on flowing.

4. Brian Tannenbaum blogs about how Rothstein once stood him up for lunch. Gosh Brian, I hate to break this to you, but Rothstein stood EVERYONE up for lunch. It was a running joke how many people would show up at the same time at Bova Prime for an appointment ‘to meet Scott’ to only find out he was blowing out birthday candles with Charley Crist and the other boys. Speaking of those boys, maybe Scott will have pictures of Charley Crist with one of them. Bob Norman and I have been looking for them for years. Jason Wetherington, where are you?

Speaking of which, a few weeks ago I did a wimpy and intellectual blog about Scott's war of words with Bob Norman. The Jewish Avenger vs the Tabloid Reporter. And I suggested they could both be right in their arguments and claims. Looks like I was wrong. Only one was, and today everyone is reading his columns at the Pulp. http://blogs.browardpalmbeach.com/pulp/

And perhaps the most illuminating revelation in this cacophony is the one that Steve Geller made a costume shirt for Scott Rothstein because of the 'Jewish Avenger' article. Do you think he sewed it himself? A little take off on that tourist T: " I gave $50,000 to his campaign and all I got was this t-shirt"

5. Bill Scherer says he represents clients who may have lost $500 million in investment funds. Gosh, Bill, if those rich people were so smart, why did those clients not come to read those contracts with you before they blew their money? I am not feeling too much sympathy for people who did not ask for accountings after the ‘Bernie Made Off’ with everything era. Why are smart rich people so stupid?

6. And Bob Norman, the flight plan that Scott Rothstein took back from Morocco is relevant how? Might have been juicier if he took a Ford Bronco. Still, you are the man to go for those who want the know. And nothing was better than the photo-shopped morphed picture of Scott in a purple suit, being carted away in cuffs. If you want to understand really how out there Scott was, he probably has two more suits just like that in his closet.

7. Does the Daily Business Review really consider it newsworthy to note that amongst Scott Rothstein’s real estate deals the Feds might be looking into is the transfer of a dock easement in 2007? Does that include his wife’s ability to pour a Blue Martini? Talk about Johnny come latelys! The DBR is all over this now, but don’t you think if any newspaper in town should have been checking Rothstein out all along it should have been the county’s legal newspaper.

8. I have not met anyone that really does not like Scott. Sure, he came across bombastic and pugnacious, but he was witty, charming, and supportive. So I do not see lots of people lusting for his demise yet. I emphasize yet. I suspect as the dominoes fall, and they will, the truth is going to reveal Scott as less than charming. But right now I think most people wanted to know why and how Scott was able to pull off what they could not. How did he get into the fast lane and they did not? Like that poster I once saw, ‘I either want less corruption or more a chance to be part of it.’

9. Joel Hirschorn tells the Daily Business Review that the Rothstein debacle is going to be known as the ‘Criminal Defense Lawyers Welfare Relief Act.’ Cute, but I doubt it. Most of the lawyers involved so far are stepping in pro bono to cover the arse of their friends, who by week’s end are essentially out of jobs and paychecks, and have nowhere to turn in a dwindling economy.

10. You know the firm will have a really hard time of surviving when the Receiver asks which lawyer would have the most skill at selling Scott Rothstein’s sports memorabilia on E Bay. He’s got some good stuff there, but I don’t think they allow it in Federal prisons. Ouch! Scotty, my buddy, my lansman, remember Shoeless Joe Jackson and the Black Sox scandal, when a young devastated fan cried out: ‘Say it ain’t so, Joe?”

Say it ain’t so, Scotty;
Say it ain’t so!
No, huh?
Damn.

On a serious note:

In this otherwise lighthearted column can I make an honest plea to all the lawyers that are there to please not forget in the midst of your stress, that you have lots of clients, and you need to call them, email them, or otherwise reach out to them and notify them that their files are okay and their cases are not in jeopardy.

I have to tell you what I find offensive about the media in this lust to sensationalize everything about this story, right up to the DBR piece about the firm's lawyers lawyering up, is the complete lack of the printed word about the hundreds, if not thousands, of clients left in the lurch, and what they are going through.

Mea culpa. I am one of them, on a PI case. Aside from appointing a receiver, I would like Judge Streitfeld to direct the remaining associates to take affirmative steps to insure that the legal rights and interests of all those being served by RRA are continually protected. Could there be in this media frenzy numerous clients are freaking out? Especially hearing that the FBI is seizing files?

Whether or not the firm can survive, individual lawyers have duties and responsibilities as members of the Florida Bar to reach out and ameliorate their clients' concerns, and it should be done proactively by those attorneys.

Update-http://www.abajournal.com/news/rothstein_firm_running_on_fumes_newspaper_says/?from=widget

The Rothstein Meteor

Meteors. They move fast. They capture your attention. They flame out quickly though, don't they?

Yesterday, in a day that will live in Broward County legal infamy, Scott Rothstein was sued by his own partner, Stuart Rosenfeldt, and his own law firm, scores of reputable and decent lawyers. Bummer for us. Bummer for them.

The initial allegations, in a surprisingly sketchy and bareboned complaint, are that Rothstein has misappropriated investor funds, in the millions. There is sure more to come. Represented by Kendall Coffey, a former US Attorney, this is the most dramatic right cross to the Broward County legal community since our former Sheriff was indicted. Oh yes, and he now works there at that firm.

The complaint is here: http://static.cbslocal.com/station/wfor/files/rothstein.pdf

It gets worse. The Feds and the FBI are apparently now investigating Rothstein, who hired Mark Nurik, the chief criminal lawyer at RRA to represent himself. When the named and senior partner of a major law firm has to lawyer up, that does not bode well for the firm. Already, other prominent associates have fled the door, seeking to disassociate themselves from their tarnished affilliation.

It gets worse still. The Chief Judge of our district, Victor Tobin, yesterday morning at 6:45 a.m. circulated to all jurists an inadvertently illiterate memo warning everyone that the firm may be filing for bankruptcy immediately, and was seeking the appointment of a receiver. Victor's early morning misspellings was probably due to problems with his wide fingers on a small blackberry. The more important message was for judges to go easy on lawyers from RRA who may not show to court, since they may have to share their desks temporarily with FBI agents.

An abrupt bankruptcy however, and the appointment of a receiver, means that decent secretaries and honorable lawyers are not going to get paid this Friday. This means that there is going to be a frenzied effort by clients to want to know what the hell is going on with their cases, their files, their funds. The Tower of Power is collapsing and it stinks because it makes all lawyers look crooked and bad. As if we needed any help.

The last time I did a blog about Scott Rothstein it dealt with his foolish brouhaha and challenging scuffle with journalist Bob Norman. Rothstein was part bully and part bulldog, declaring petulantly he would sue anyone that dissed him untruthfully in the press. I pointed out that while he had that right if he could prove up libel, it did not look good for him or his firm that a statured partner was presenting himself to the community as a Bronx pugilist. Today, I suspect he has bigger problems.

At the time, I also wrote that Bob Norman is one of Broward County's most preeminent journalists, a bulldog of his own, and his daily blogs expose newsbreaking stories on a more timely basis than any of the daily newspapers. Today, he has one of his biggest stories, and that is before a shred of evidence or a single fact has yet actually been proven up in a court of law about the alleged misconduct of Scott Rothstein. Of course, 'yet' is the operative word. So there will be more to write. Just wait.

While the mainstream media will now jump into the picture, I suspect no one will develop more truthful information about the inner workings of the discombobulating firm in the days and weeks ahead than Bob Norman. He is probably being swamped with emails from a wealth of disappointed and startled lawyers with unique insight into what is unfortunately transpiring. But while some are saying 'I told you so,' and others are chortling with glee, none of this is good or healthy for any of us in the legal community. It makes all lawyers look rotten, and authenticates the wrongful influences and 'culture of corruption' that has permeated this county for so long.

Significantly, it is a culture exposed as much by journalists from the outside than lawyers on the inside. Really, where is Senator Sam Ervin when you need him? What did those lawyers know and when did they know it? Already, Buddy Nevins is listing on his blog the politicians who are rushing to return campaign donations from RRA to a receiver for the firm that has yet to be appointed. Always the rush to integrity after the fact.

What happens to the playbills at 'Broadway Across America' with the firm's name on it as the Fall theater season unfolds? What happens to those ads for charities at the Bank Atlantic Center during intermission at Florida Panther games? What happens to those pledges? the charities? Some, no, many! people are really going to get hurt here.

In legal circles, we talk about the appearance of impropriety. Today, we are again swimming in a sea of it. To those decent and honorable lawyers at the firm whose names are inappropriately being maligned in the oceans of 'guilt by association,' may you tread from those polluted waters and rise above them. The story everyone is writing about today is a pain intimately most yours.

Stuart Rosenfeldt may have summed up everyone's worst fears about RRA when he told the Sun-Sentinel yesterday that: ""I think we're going to go down in history in the same breath as [Bernie] Madoff." A very sincere and incisive admission from a good man enduring a bad thing.

In this county, regretfully, we have all survived worse, from self-indulgent million dollar parties at the now disbanded Port Commission to drunk Congressman dancing with strippers at nude bars, purportedly investigating the international drug trade. Yes, J. Herbert Burke, we remember you and Doug Danziger, too, the Vice Mayor who hated pornography but loved his prostitutes.

Scott Rothstein is just another story in the Naked City. The list goes on, from the International Gold Bullion Exchange to Mutual Benefits. There are 80,000 more of them. All we have done today is add another name.

AS THIS STORY IS UNFOLDING NATIONALLY AND IS BEING BLOGGED, WRITTEN UP, AND SPOKEN ABOUT BY ANYONE AND EVERYONE, THE BEST WAY TO UPDATE THE STORY IS JUST PUTTING IN SOME MAJOR LINKS TO THE BREAKING STORIES:

http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/broward/fort-lauderdale/sfl-rothstein-law-firm-b110109,0,4262229.story

ABAJournal.com: “Miami Lawyer Says He Pointed Feds to Rothstein in Claimed $500M Scheme”
ABAJournal.com: "Rothstein Firm Seeks Allegedly Missing $100M to $185M; Is He in Morocco?"
ABAJournal.com: "Rothstein Rosenfeldt Seeks to Dissolve, Says MP Suspected of Wrongdoing Won’t Go"

The Jewish Avenger vs. The Investigative Reporter: Who is Right?

I thought I would do a debate with myself over the brouhaha between Scott Rothstein and Bob Norman. It reminds me of the Talmudic story of when a rabbinical student thought he caught a Rabbi in a conundrum.

The story goes like this. Student 1 and 2 each approach the Rabbi with a claim they think is correct and ask him to settle the dispute. Student 1 makes his argument and the Rabbi says, “You are right.” The second student makes exactly the opposite claim and the Rabbi says, “You are right.”

Now a third student comes up to the scholar and says: “But Rabbi, you have totally contradicted yourself. Each of the two students gave opposite arguments and yet you said they were both right. This cannot be.”

Alas, the wise Rabbi smiled at the third student, patted him on the head, and said: “See, you are right, too.”

So Scott Rothstein has the quijones to stand up to Bob Norman, who rips anyone at anytime when he thinks they have their hand in the Broward Corruption Stew, a porridge fed upon by many over the years. There are multiple brands, from The Cowan Chowder to The Jenne Jambalaya. The list is too long to list.

Here is the piece:http://www.browardpalmbeach.com/2009-09-10/news/lawyer-scott-rothstein-goes-on-the-attack-over-media-coverage-of-his-friends/

Scott has an absolute right to do fight back against the same injustice that Norman exposes. What is good for the goose is good for the gander. Why should you not be able to defend yourself or another if you think you or that other party is being slandered? Who granted to Bob Norman an exclusive right to write without criticism?

But Scotty, what are you thinking? You are not a Bronx pugilist. How dare you threaten a reporter? You are the name partner of a big macha law firm, with lots of legal credentials, even though Barry Stone is there. And how can you win an argument with a guy who as the journalist gets in the last word? I am guessing a lot of friends called up Bob and said ‘What kind of schmuck is this to go after an investigative journalist?’. It was my first reaction.

After all, Bob Norman has for years been this community’s leading investigative citizen journalist, exposing systemic corruption. If there is dirt, he gets to it. Just like JAABLOG in the courthouse. If someone is bleeding, they get the DNA first. Plus, Bob Norman, even though he is prone to hyperbole (oh, he is going to hate that) has been proven right again and again. Occasionally, he gores your friends or yourself, but it does not matter. The community is served by his writing.

But then Scott says wait a second, you just can’t trespass on someone’s good name without a basis in fact, and if you do, damn, 'I am going to use the resources of my law firm to sue your ass in court, especially if you go after my friends. And because you are going after my friends I am going to go after your wife.' But he sounds like a kid in a sandbox shouting: ‘na na na na na.’ Not exactly graceful. But still, the guy stood up for his buddies. That's what friends do. So I am thinking that a lot of people who have been targets of Bob privately called up Scott and said ‘Way to go. Kick his ass.’

So Scott is right too, because if you libel someone and can prove up the falsehoods were published with a gross recklessness or careless disregard for truth, you may pursue a legal claim justly. You have the right to right the writer who wrongs you.

Bob justifiably retorts that just because Scott is politically connected and well-heeled he will not compromise himself one single iota in exposing shady deals and corrupt leaders, adding 'if you think you can intimidate me into doing so, go shove a frying pan you know where.’ And damn, that is just what he should have said, because Bob is jealously protecting a first amendment right to probe into, and then write about, anything he damn well wants.

But then Scott bitches that Bob says things with his own slant and violates fundamental principles of fairness by driving and digging his targets into the ground with innuendo not fact. But Bob correctly points out 'look, deal with it. There's a free press' and he is entitled to express opinions, and formulate conclusions, without the permission or consent of Mr. Rothstein. And Mr. Norman is absolutely right about that.

So I can’t decide who to congratulate. I suppose that is why I am a wimp on this. Having lived my life in both roles, as a journalist and a lawyer, I am conflicted. I am equivocating. Loudon Wainright would say I am like a dead skunk in the middle of the road. Where you only find yellow lines.

Bob Norman can't let himself be intimitated. That does not mean he cannot be called out on what he writes. All his sources are not unimpeachable. They have their own agenda, just as his stories have their own slant. Sometimes you get it wrong. I am sure he has kicked himself more than once over the years.

I hosted a radio show for ten years. Within five seconds of expressing one thought, some caller shot back live what an idiot I was, and how I might not leave the station alive that morning. I had to deal with it on the spot. The essence of a free society is to express not only the opinions you support but the ones you oppose. We did not create the first amendment just for people to agree with us. Besides, callers who agree all the time can be boring. Better you get called out to defend yourself.

So to the Scott Rothsteins of the world, if you feel legally wronged, sue- that is what you do best. Don't take crap from journalists who lie, but damn you better prove up that lie. And to the Bob Normans of the world who feel passionate about their prose- write it, that is what you do best, and that is what our society needs most. Don't take crap from lawyers who threaten you.

Maybe Fidel Castro could open his speeches with the line "I think I can say without fear of contradiction...." Well you can't in America. Even if you are the President you can get heckled by a Congressman. And if you are the President, you more than anyone else should be able to stand the heckling.

So Scott and Bob, they can’t both be right, can they?

Let me ask my Rabbi.

Can You Get By on 25% of 10 Million?

This short blog piece is dedicated to all of us that practice criminal law and defense and go out and hustle everyday. We are not so impacted by the adventures of the Attorney General on the following issues.

The WSJ praises today a bill supported by Bill McCollum to limit the possibility of jackpot fees when private lawyers team up with the state AG's office, a practice in which our state had been among the worst offenders during the tobacco heist.

The Florida bill, which would cap attorneys fees at $50 million, would hardly consign lawyers to a life of penury, unless you are Scott Rothstein and your wife is pressing you to buy a newer home. Outside counsel could receive contingency fees of 25% for the first $10 million, 20% of the next $5 million, 15% for the following $5 million and so on. I spoke to Russell Williams, chair of the BACDL. He says those are the new SPD rates.

The bill would also require competitive bidding and make contracts transparent to voters by posting them on the Attorney General's Web site. In case you want to discover how much you are missing out on. The article says the bill faces opposition from lobbyists in Tallahassee. I want to hang with guys that think 25% of 10 mil is not enough. What do they play pro baseball?

Briefs, Names and Notes in the News

This is a weekly feature that will periodically be updated with more notes as we discover items worthy of some press but not a singular post…

---The picture at the top of the blog that you see is of Amy Brian, discharged from the Kansas National Guard after serving a year of combat duty in Iraq. Her crime? Promise not to ask or tell? Being gay, of course. Caught kissing a friend , hey that's some serious stuff !!! Read the travesty here…. http://cjonline.com/stories/020809/kan_385832549.shtml

…. Terry Schiavo, anyone? In Rome, the Italian government on Friday passed an emergency decree to keep a woman in a vegetative state alive on a feeding tube, circumventing a high court decision and ignoring a warning from the Italian president that he would refuse to sign the decree. Read it in the NY Timeshttp://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/07/world/europe/07italy.html?_r=1&emc=tnt&tntemail0=y…

--From previous posts…we have updated the story about the AP suing Shephard Fairey, the Obama poster artist, as he got arrested in Boston for painting graffiti on the walls of bridges; yes, really----http://browardlawblog.blogspot.com/2009/02/ap-sues-over-popular-obama-poster.html….

--Also redone the story on the flag desecration case arrests of Fred Phelps band of fundamentalists. I hate him, but I think Fred’s minions are getting screwed http://browardlawblog.blogspot.com/2009/02/flag-and-first-amendment-burn-in.html--

---the Public Defender’s Office lost a champion in the passing of Ron Dallas yesterday after a series of kidney related ailments over the past few years; there's a page on Jaablog to express your thoughts..

http://jaablog.jaablaw.com/2009/02/07/courthouse-loss.aspx?ref=rss

A Bronx Tale comes to Broadway Across America on Tuesday night at the Parker Playhouse, for only a week, and believe it or not, it appears that Rosenfeldt, Rothstein and Adler are now sponsors of the theatrical group event. Unsure whether Scott will be in the starring role..

http://www.broadwayacrossamerica.com/BAA.Web/Pages/BAACity.aspx?city=Fort-Lauderdale&SeriesShowId=6720&showId=1599&name=A-Bronx-Tale

City elections also Tuesday, with lawyers Jack Seiler and Dean Trantalis arguably frontrunners and squaring off for Mayor of Fort Lauderdale. Good Sentinel blog piece by Anthony Man suggests Seiler will be stung by the gay community for getting Jim Naugle’s support even though Jack has always been supportive of the gay community. Dean has a very organized campaign that has only been positive and proactive. I expect a close race and a March run off, but my guess is that the personable defense lawyer Steve Rossi, despite all those bus benches, does not have the broad-based community support to get the votes he needs, nor does Mr. Reynerson, who owns a wonderful business, Claad Tile, but is running as Lieutenant Colonel Reynerson. I don't see that as a winning move. I am not sure which race Jim Lewis is going to lose this time. It's hard to keep track. Calm down, he's a good guy, but there is no Bar rule which requires you to run for office everytime we hold an election.

http://weblogs.sunsentinel.com/news/politics/broward/blog/2009/02/does_support_from_fort_lauderd.html

…

--A feature in today’s paper shows the profligacy and extravagance of the Lieutenant Governor in using the State’s private planes to fly back and forth around the state. Charley, the gov, should fire his ass. The way it looks now Kottkamp should be nominated for a cabinet post in the Obama administration.http://www.sun-sentinel.com/news/politics/elections/sfl-flfkottkamp0208sbfeb08,0,7399045.story..

By the way, I never heard the word ‘vetting’ until it was used to describe the way Obama was going to cull out the best and the brightest for his administration. After seeing the job he did, maybe they should go back to good old fashion ‘screening.’....

An appeals court says imprisoned former Illinois Gov. George Ryan may keep part of the state pension that was canceled after his conviction on racketeering and fraud charges. That should be encouraging for Rod Blagoyevich’s future and Ken Jenne’s past…http://www.nytimes.com/2009/02/07/us/07brfs-RULINGFOREXG_BRF.html?emc=tnt&tntemail0=y

Rothsteins' Bova Prime Opens on ELO

Lots of legal fare when Adrian Grenier's 'Honey Brothers' hosted the night's events at 401 East Las Olas Boulevard last week.

The opening party brought in the likes of Dan Marino and other local socialites. The Honey Brothers band, which includes drummer and vocalist Adrian Grenier of HBO's "Entourage," hosted the night’s events. The band performed to a packed house as h'ors deourves and cocktails were served.

Attorney Scott Rothstein is a co owner with Tony and Laurie Bova. High end dining includes sparkling waters at up to $40 a bottle. Ah. but there's a private champagne room for a mere $1,000 minimum.

Still, the venue is striking; chandeliers, high ceilings, stirring decor. If it takes after their other ventures in Boca Raton, Bova Ristorante and Bova Cucina, it is sure to be a success and attraction to the downtown courthouse crowd. The place was packed with attorneys and courthouse personnel at five o'clock happy hours on Thursday and Friday.

The food is specatacular. Grilled Prawns. Japanese kobe. Buttery lobster tails at the price of your first mortgage. Most importantly, lots of breads. 500 wines, but many many you can order by the glass. Executive chef Werner Steeber's Bova Prime menu specializes in steaks, chops and seafood plus Italian-style fare. He is hiring a retired politician from Arizona named John Mc Cain as the Maitre' D.

Very classy, upscale, and sure to become a popular venue. Kudos for the quality. Moderate to expensive pricing, and you get what you pay for. Nice addition to the boulevard.