Legal News

Mel Weiss Agrees to Plead Guilty in Alleged Kickback Scheme

By Dan Slater

Less than a week after Dickie Scruggs pleaded guilty to conspiring to bribe a judge, Mel Weiss — that other king of the plaintiffs bar — has struck a deal to agree to plead guilty in a case alleging improper kickbacks, reports the WSJ. The terms of the deal, which could be announced as soon as today, aren’t yet known. Click here for past blog coverage of the Milberg Weiss saga.

Weiss, 72, was indicted in September on charges in connection with his role in an alleged scheme at his firm, now known as Milberg Weiss, to pay millions in kickbacks to clients in exchange for their being at the ready to serve as name plaintiffs in shareholder class-action cases. Weiss was charged with four counts and could have faced 40 years in federal prison if convicted on all of them in a trial.

The firm was indicted in 2006 in connection with the alleged kickback scheme. It isn’t known whether prosecutors struck a deal with the firm, but lawyers in the case have said that a plea deal with Mr. Weiss could facilitate a deal with the firm. Three other former lead lawyers at the firm, including William Lerach, have pleaded guilty. Last mont, Lerach was sentenced to two years, the highest possible term in his plea agreement. According to the report, that two-year sentence could establish a floor for a potential jail term for Weiss.

Full post as published by Law Blog - WSJ.com on March 20, 2008 (boomark / email).