Corey Shanus Says Owner of NJ Auction House Sold Him Counterfeit Items
A Westchester County attorney with a world-class memorabilia collection said in a federal lawsuit filed Monday in Manhattan that the owner of a prominent New Jersey auction house sold him items supplied by Peter Nash, the former hip-hop artist turned baseball historian, which Shanus later learned were fake.
Collector Corey Shanus said in the suit that Rob Lifson, the owner and president of Robert Edward Auction sold him counterfeit items.
Judge Cites Kramer Insurable Interest: Case in Discovery Issue
In what may be an inkling of what is yet to come. a court ruling on a discovery motion in a beneficial interest case went against the insurer after the judge cited the decision in the Arthur Kramer insurable-interest case.
Henry Pitman, a judge with the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, ruled Thursday against Principal Life Insurance Co. in a case involving a $5 million life insurance policy taken out by the late Or. Fletcher Johnson
NY Law Permits Sale of STOLI Policies, Court Rules
Law360, New York (November 17, 2010) — New York law permits a person to procure an insurance policy on his or her life and then sell it to a hedge fund, bank or other investor, even when the policy is obtained just for that purpose, New York’s highest court ruled Wednesday in a closely watched stranger-originated life insurance case.
The 5-2 decision in the New York Court of Appeals represents a defeat for plaintiff Alice Kramer, the widow of Arthur Kramer, who helped found law firm Kramer Levin Naftalis & Frankel LLP.
Kramer v. Phoenix
Background: Widow, as personal representative of her deceased husband’s estate, brought action against life insurers, trustees, insurance broker, and “stranger” investors allegedly involved in strangerowned life insurance (SOLI) scheme in which her deceased husband participated, seeking to have policy proceeds paid to her. Defendants filed counterclaims. The United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, Deborah A. Batts, J., 653 F.Supp.2d 354, dismissed in part, and appeal was taken. The United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit certified question regarding whether the SOLI scheme violated New York law.
Holding: The Court of Appeals, Ciparick, J., held that New York law permits a person to procure an
insurance policy on his or her own life and immediately transfer it to one without an insurable interest in that life, even where the policy was obtained for just such a purpose.
Madoff Suits Settled With BNY Mellon Unit
A Bank of New York Mellon Corp. unit will pay $210 million to resolve a series of lawsuits alleging that it concealed doubts about the business operated by convicted Ponzi scheme operator Bernard L. Madoff.
The settlement by Ivy Asset Management LLC, which comes less than a month before th fourth anniversary of Mr. Madoff’s fraud coming to light, marks the latest step toward recovering assets for investors with Mr. Madoff’s firm. It resolves litigation brought by the New York Attorney General’s office, the U.S. Department of Labor and investors. An additional $9 million will be contributed by other individual defendants in the cases.