A federal appeals court ruled that two former investors with Bernard Madoff cannot pursue claims against the estate of a Florida businessman who was one of the convicted swindler's biggest clients, Reuters reported yesterday. The decision by a three-judge panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit is a victory for Irving Picard, the trustee liquidating Madoff's firm, in a battle over his authority to reach settlements on behalf of victims of Madoff's Ponzi scheme. Picard reached a $7.2 billion settlement with the estate of Jeffry Picower in 2010, the largest such settlement on behalf of victims of Madoff's Ponzi scheme. The trustee has said that Picower, who drowned in 2009, knew or should have known that Madoff was operating a fraud. About $5 billion was to go to the estate of Bernard L. Madoff Investment Securities LLC and $2.2 billion was to be forfeited to the U.S. government. Picower's widow at the time said she "absolutely confident" her husband was not complicit.
