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Mukasey removes himself from Madoff investigation

By Bernard Hibbitts (editor) and University of Pittsburgh School of Law students.

[JURIST] US Attorney General Michael Mukasey recused himself from the investigation of former NASDAQ stock market chairman Bernard Madoff because his son is representing a top official in Madoff's investment firm, US Department of Justice (DOJ) officials said Wednesday. Mark Mukasey, a former federal prosecutor, works as an attorney with the New York law firm of Bracewell Giuliani and is representing Frank DiPascali, the chief financial officer at Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities LLC. DOJ officials did not say when Mukasey found out about the conflict but did say that he was removing himself entirely from the investigation and would not be making any decisions on the case. The US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed charges last week in New York against Madoff and his firm for an alleged $50 billion fraud scheme. On Tuesday, SEC Chairman Christopher Cox said that he would launch an immediate investigation into how the fraud allegedly perpetrated by Madoff went undetected for so long. The SEC will also look into relationships between SEC officials and Madoff's family members, including Madoff's niece, who married a former SEC lawyer in 2007.

Full post as published by JURIST - The Paper Chase on December 18, 2008 (boomark / email).