Madoff Makes Peace with the SEC, Amount of Fine TBD

[WSJ_law_blog]

Of all the pressing items on Bernie Madoff’s to-do list, we’d imagine that “reach partial settlement with SEC” might not have been at the very top. (We’ll let you, LB readers, tell us what should be at the top.)

Regardless, Madoff can scratch that one off his list. Earlier Monday it was announced that Madoff and the SEC had reached a partial settlement, though the SEC won’t decide what fine he’ll pay until later.

The settlement, which must be approved by a judge, prevents Madoff from working in the financial industry again (something, frankly, we weren’t exactly losing sleep over). Madoff settled the civil case without admitting or denying wrongdoing, which is customary for SEC cases.

According to the WSJ story, the settlement isn’t surprising since Madoff had little to lose after his reported confession to authorities. He was required to respond to the SEC complaint and without reaching a deal he would have had to testify or refuse to testify, likely by invoking his Fifth Amendment right against self-incrimination.

The partial settlement of the SEC’s civil case still leaves the more closely watched criminal case up in the air. Federal prosecutors in New York have until Wednesday to file an indictment against Madoff, reach a plea deal, or seek an extension to give them more time to build a case.

That said, lawyers have told the LB that the SEC settlement doesn’t necessarily portend any given action in the criminal matter, like, say, a plea or indictment.

Really irritating to me. The should have taken every last asset from him AND every close family member.