Home -> Law Blog Directory -> Federal Judiciary Blogs -> Southern District of Florida

Federal Judiciary

: Southern District of Florida

Ed Morse duped for $57 MILLION

According to this Herald article, he wired Scott Rothstein $57 million based on this story:

What began as a dispute over a $2 million decorating bill for Morse's new Boca Raton and Maine homes transformed into a $57 million scam, in which Rothstein allegedly ripped off his wealthy clients with an elaborate series of lies, delays and forged court orders, sources familiar with the matter told The Miami Herald.
Ed and Carol Morse -- who were family friends with Rothstein -- sued Boca Raton decorator Jan Jones in 2006 claiming he botched their job. Rothstein told the Morses earlier this year that they had won the breach-of-contract case and that the decorator owed them $23 million, sources said.
It wasn't true. In fact, the Morses lost the case.
Rothstein also produced purported federal court orders signed by a judge, saying the Morses could claim the judgment by seizing a Cayman Islands bank account belonging to the decorator, sources said.
There were no such court orders, nor any fat bank account, court records show.
To confiscate the money, the Fort Lauderdale lawyer allegedly told the Morses they had to post a bond 2 ½ times larger than the judgment, or $57 million, the sources said. The large amount was required as a guarantee in case bank officials confiscated the judgment from the wrong account, Rothstein told them.
So the couple wired the $57 million to Rothstein in installments earlier this year, the sources said. It is not clear whether Rothstein paid any of that money back.

PAINFUL. Too bad Morse didn't have the force:

Okay, I was sick of Rothstein stories too, but $57 million.....

Full post as published by Southern District of Florida on November 11, 2009 (boomark / email).