New York partner David Sheehan, who serves as the court-appointed counsel to partner Irving Picard, the trustee in the liquidation of Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities LLC (BLMIS), was recently selected by The American Lawyer as its "Litigator of the Week" (click on title to view article). He was profiled in the March 5, 2010, "AmLaw Daily" e-newsletter and is featured on its website.A recent bankruptcy court ruling in the Madoff matter led to this national recognition for Sheehan. On March 1, the judge issued a 34-page decision agreeing with Sheehan's argument for Picard's valuation approach to calculating victim losses.
According to the profile, Sheehan has served as both trustee and counsel to the trustee in various liquidation proceedings under the Securities Investor Protection Act, but BLMIS is the "granddaddy of all liquidations." Sheehan said he likes the role of counsel best, noting, "I like being counsel because I get to argue all of these cases."
Commenting on the recent bankruptcy court ruling, Sheehan said that while he sympathized with all of Madoff's victims, he wanted to give a voice to the net losers. "We were focused on . . . those who didn't even get their own money back," he said. Judge Lifland's decision, he added, is the most important to come out of the liquidation proceedings so far. But Lifland's opinion won't be the last word. Sheehan told us that it's almost certain that there will be an expedited appeal to the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit, "more opportunity for the man behind The Man to have some fun."