4/12/2011
Tampa, FL (April 12, 2001) – Wiand Guerra King announced today that it has resolved and completed its work in the Receivership related to the Howard K. Waxenberg Ponzi scheme. On June 9, 2005, Burton W. Wiand, Chairman of Wiand Guerra King, was appointed Receiver by the United States District Court for the Middle District of Florida at the suggestion of the Securities and Exchange Commission. Burt was given the task to attempt to unravel the complex financial transactions and obligations that were created as a result of the Ponzi scheme conducted by Waxenberg, a Bradenton, Florida financial advisor. The Receivership was made significantly more difficult due to the fact that Waxenberg, who raised over $140 million from investors, chose to liquidate the Ponzi scheme holdings and distribute almost all of the remaining funds to a portion of the investors and then commit suicide. Waxenberg’s decision to favor certain of his investors prior to his demise created a significant unfairness with respect to the distribution of the assets that remained at the time of his death.
The lawyers of Wiand Guerra King, primarily through clawback lawsuits, were successful in gathering enough assets to provide each investor with an allowed loss a total distribution of at least 28% of their losses. Allowed investor losses totaled over $36 million and as a result of the efforts of Burt and the lawyers at Wiand Guerra King, led by Gianluca Morello, $10 million has already been distributed to innocent investors. During the course of the clawback litigation in this Receivership, Gianluca and the rest of the Wiand Guerra King team were successful in significantly expanding and defining the law relating to clawback litigation and a Receiver’s rights under the Florida Uniform Fraudulent Transfers Act.
Burt is in the process of completing the final distribution to claimants in the amount of $274,276.22 which will bring the total amount distributed to defrauded investors to $10,274,276.22. On March 30, 2011, the Honorable Susan C. Bucklew entered an Order approving the Receiver’s final report and accounting and granting the Receiver’s motion to bring this matter to a close.
Burt has also been appointed Receiver in the $400 million Ponzi scheme conducted by Arthur Nadel in Sarasota, Florida. Nadel was prosecuted and sentenced to fourteen years in prison by the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York. The Nadel Receivership is ongoing and a claims process is underway. To date, Burt has amassed over $20 million. Burt hopes to distribute a portion of these funds to investors in an initial interim distribution in the late summer or early fall of this year.
About Wiand Guerra King P.L.: Wiand Guerra King P.L. is a Tampa-based firm and was formed in 2009 when several of the members moved from one of the largest and most highly-regarded firms in Florida. Wiand Guerra King’s attorneys have over a century of combined experience in regulatory proceedings, complex civil and white-collar criminal litigation, and arbitration. The firm’s lawyers hail from senior levels of the SEC’s Division of Enforcement, from one of the nation’s top financial services firm, and from leading national and international law firms. The firm’s senior attorneys have practiced together in one form or another since 1994.
For more information, please contact Burton Wiand at bwiand@wiandlaw.com or Gianluca Morello at gmorello@wiandlaw.com.