Judge Jed S. Rakoff of the US District Court in Manhattan has ruled that the lawsuit filed by the trustree against the Mets owners will go to trial on March 19.
The judge also ruled that the Wilpons are liable for the $83 million in fictitious profits.
Irving Picard will have a chance to convince a jury that the Mets may be liable for an additional $300 million.
So here we go…
Original Post 10:00 am
Judge Rakoff is scheduled to issue a ruling today in the $386 million clawback lawsuit filed by the trustee Irving Picard against Fred Wilpon and Saul Katz.
If the judge finds that there is not enough evidence to prove that the Mets owners willfully blinded themselves to the Ponzi scheme, Rakoff could grant the motion for summary judgment filed by the Mets’ owners and have the suit tossed. If that happens, there will be no trial and it would prevent the trustee from going after the $300 million in principal.
However, if the judge rules against the Mets owners, the case will go to trial beginning March 19 as scheduled and the jury selection process will begin.
The judge is also expected to rule on the trustee’s motion to recover the $83 million in fictitious profits the Mets owners received from their Madoff accounts. Picard is seeking to recover this money before the start of the trial.
The judge’s rulings are not expected to be announced before 5:00 PM today, but you can bet that whatever happens today, either side will most likely file for an appeal.
