Legal News

Breaking News: Marc Dreier to Plead Guilty on May 11

By Ashby Jones

This just in, courtesy of Dow Jones Newswires’s Chad Bray (link not available):

Disgraced lawyer Marc Dreier will plead guilty May 11 to money laundering and other charges in an alleged scheme to sell $700 million in fictitious promissory notes, his lawyer said Monday.

Gerald L. Shargel, Dreier’s lawyer, said his client will enter a guilty plea to all the charges in a superseding indictment unsealed in March — conspiracy, securities fraud, money laundering and five counts of wire fraud. Dreier will plead guilty without a deal in place with the government, Shargel said. His lawyer had previously indicated they expected a quick resolution of the case.

Prosecutors have alleged Dreier sold about $700 million in fake promissory notes and misappropriated client funds from his law firm. The out-of-pocket loss to investors and clients when the fraud was discovered in December was more than $400 million, the government has said. The overall scheme allegedly ran from 2004 to 2008.

Dreier also is facing civil charges by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, filed in December, and his assets have been frozen. His law firm, Dreier LLP, filed for bankruptcy protection on Dec. 16.

Full post as published by Law Blog - WSJ.com on April 27, 2009 (boomark / email).