Stanford Ponzi Scheme Lawsuits Consolidated Into Texas MDL
As many as 17 lawsuits brought by former investors for money lost in the alleged $8 billion Ponzi scheme run by accused swindler Allen Stanford have been consolidated into a multidistrict litigation in Texas federal court.
The United States Panel on Multidistrict Litigation recently ruled that consolidating the separate lawsuits which bring similar allegations of wrongdoing against Stanford and his worldwide investment empire, Stanford Financial Group, “would promote the just and efficient conduct of the litigation.”
The consolidated cases will now be heard collectively for pre-trial matters including discovery. If they cannot be disposed of at the pre-trial stage, the individual suits will be returned to their respective district courts where they were filed for trials.
Stanford was indicted in June for his alleged role in defrauding thousands of investors through the sale of fraudulent certificates of deposit in his Stanford International Bank. He and some of his top corporate officers are accused of lying to investors about the rates of return they could expect on their investments and operating a Ponzi scheme in which early investors were paid purported profits from later investors in the pyramid scheme.
He has pleaded not guilty and remains in custody in a Houston-area lock up, where various reports say he recently came out on the losing end of a prison brawl with a broken nose, black eyes, and other injuries.
Consolidation Panel Favors Texas Judicial District
The consolidation involves three cases filed in the Northern District of Texas, two in the Southern District of Texas, and one each in the Southern District of Florida and the Middle District of Louisiana. At least 10 more related lawsuits recently filed by former Stanford investors also may be joined in the consolidation as “tag-along” actions, officials said.
Parties in the lawsuits had sought consolidation in the Northern District of Texas, the Southern District of Texas, or the Southern District of Florida.
“Northern District of Texas will serve the convenience of the parties and witnesses and promote the just and efficient conduct of the litigation,” the consolidation panel ruled.
The cases will be presided over by the Honorable Judge David C. Godbey.
The federal lawsuits all stem from similar allegations that Stanford and his various companies engaged in misrepresentations about his investment programs, including claims made in promotional materials for the investments.
The suits also allege authorities in the commonwealths of Antigua and Barbados, where Stanford’s bank was based, of contributing to the alleged financial fraud.
Related posts:
- Hydroxycut Injury Lawsuits Consolidated Into So. Cal. MDL Sixteen federal lawsuits filed by users of Hydroxycut dietary supplements...
- Dozens of Yaz/Yasmin Injury Lawsuits to be Consolidated in Illinois More than thirty lawsuits filed on behalf of women who...
- Stanford Pleads Not Guilty in $7 Billion Ponzi Scheme Texas billionaire Allen Stanford has pleaded not guilty to federal...
- Allen Stanford Indicted in $8 Billion Ponzi Scheme Allen Stanford, the Texas tycoon and chairman of the international...
- Billionaire Allen Stanford Denies Ponzi Scheme, Expects to Be Indicted Soon Texas billionaire banker Allen Stanford, who is charged with carrying...
