Biglaw

Biglaw Partner Runs Face First Into Contempt Order

Fun fact: The judge wasn't pleased.

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The facts here are pretty straightforward. Baker Donelson partner Jon Seawright and senior public policy advisor Brent Alexander set themselves up a little investment fund. Then they invested in a hundred-million-dollar Ponzi scheme because, well, accidents happen. As judges are wont to do in these situations, the judge put a hold on any individual victim trying to carve back money in lieu of allowing a receiver to get the maximum recovery for all victims.

Then Seawright and Alexander went out and tried to recover some money. You can imagine where it goes from here.

Judge Carlton W. Reeves felt that ignoring his order was a bit contemptuous and benchslapped the pair. The remedy is still to be determined in subsequent hearings.

While one might have expected an audience of attorneys — especially attorneys sophisticated enough to be invested in a hundred-million-dollar Ponzi scheme — to understand the concept of a receivership, Judge Reeves decided he needed to put the law in the simplest possible terms for even the dullest tools in the shed. And, in so doing, pretty much guarantees he’ll be the go-to citation in at least one filing in every receivership matter from now on:

In the simplest terms, the Order positions the Receiver as if she was the first person in line to board a Southwest Airlines flight, where there is limited capacity and there are no reserved seats. If someone cuts in front of the Receiver, her choices become more limited. The Order also prevents victims from jostling for a position closer to the front of the line.

This isn’t the first time Judge Reeves has offered a devastatingly blunt rebuke. Maybe one of these days, people will stop going out of their way to annoy him.

(Check out the whole order on the next page.)

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HeadshotJoe Patrice is a senior editor at Above the Law and co-host of Thinking Like A Lawyer. Feel free to email any tips, questions, or comments. Follow him on Twitter if you’re interested in law, politics, and a healthy dose of college sports news. Joe also serves as a Managing Director at RPN Executive Search.

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