- A purported class of as many as 200,000 online poker players is suing Cozen O'Connor, claiming that the law firm should disgorge legal fees it received for representing clients involved in an Internet poker operation.
The suit, filed Monday in California federal court, claims that Cozen O'Connor received more than $2 million in fees from money laundered through a scheme orchestrated by the companies behind the website Full Tilt Poker. The lawsuit alleges that Cozen knew or had reason to know that the fees were derived from illegal sources and that it should repay those fees to the plaintiffs.
Also named as defendants are Chris Ferguson, Howard Lederer, Rafe Furst and other owners of companies behind Full Tilt Poker. Last month, they were also sued by the U.S. Department of Justice for allegedly defrauding thousands of online poker players out of millions, part of a DOJ crackdown on illegal Internet gambling. Cozen, which has represented some of the defendants named in the government's case, was not part of that action.
Cozen's general counsel, Robert Fiebach, declined to comment on Monday's lawsuit, saying that the law firm had not been served with the complaint. The Philadelphia-based firm has about 500 attorneys, with about 80 in New York.
The action, filed in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California, alleges fraud, violations of federal anti-racketeering law, unjust enrichment and violations of California civil law against all of the defendants.
Representing the plaintiffs is Cyrus Sanai, a solo practitioner in Beverly Hills, Calif. Sanai, who asserts that the class comprises about 200,000 consumers, said that a 2010 decision from the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit, FTC v. Network Services Depot, enables his clients to recover fees paid to law firms through illegal activity. He alleges that his clients are entitled to about $900 million from all of the named defendants.
The case is Kennedy v. Ferguson, CV-118591, U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.
For the plaintiffs: Cyrus Sanai, Sanais, Beverly Hills, Calif.
For the defendants: Not immediately available.
(Reporting by Leigh Jones)
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