Sometimes in the midst of a controversial legal case, there is a risk that important legal principles get cast aside. As attorneys, it is our ethical duty to not let that happen. We must advance all plausible legal theories on behalf of our clients within the bounds of the law.
Case in point — the liquidation of Bernie Madoff’s brokerage firm. In an overzealous effort to recover money for the brokerage firm’s customers, Irving H. Picard, trustee for the liquidation of the estate of Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities LLC, or BLMIS, attempted to reach beyond his statutory authority to seek the repayment of money from its customers.
