Milberg Weiss

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Founded in 1965 by attorneys Larry Milberg and Melvyn I. Weiss, Milberg Weiss (currently known as Milberg Weiss & Bershad LLP) is a U.S. plaintiffs' law firm. Based in New York City, it is widely known for representing investors in securities class actions. Before its split in May 2004, it was the largest plaintiff' law firm in the United States, with over 200 attorneys and a leader in its field, responsible, at least in part, for over 50 percent of all securities class action cases settled in 2002.^[1]

On May 18, 2006^[2]^,^[3], the firm and two of its named partners, David J. Bershad and Steven G. Schulman (Schulman resigned in December 2006), were indicted by United States Attorney Debra Wong Yang of the United States District Court for the Central District of California on various counts, including racketeering, mail fraud, and bribery. The charges, which have not yet been resolved in court, include claims that Milberg Weiss paid portions of its legal fees to plaintiffs in order to induce them to sue. ^[4]

As of July 14, 2006, 15 out of 42 (35%) of the firm's partners had resigned. By January 2007, more than half of the firm's partners had left the firm.

On October 18, 2006, Josh Gernstein reported that the "federal prosecutor overseeing the criminal case against a leading class action law firm, Milberg Weiss, has announced that she will resign next month to enter private practice."^{[citation needed]}

The firm has, in response to the damaged reputation, started a PR offensive through its Milbergweissjustice.com website.

In late 2006 a disgruntled member of the class in the Genta Inc. class action lawsuit, started Milberglies.com[5]. Milberglies.com reveals the close ties of some of the firms leading (ex)partners David Bershad and Melvyn Weiss to hedge funds. The allegations on Milberglies.com are rather explicit but neither the firm nor its beleaguered partners have initiated legal initiatives against Milberglies.com.