Attorney pleads guilty to charges related to Milberg Weiss federal investigation
Richard Purtich, a Los Angeles Attorney, has pleaded guilty to a felony tax charge related to allegations that he illegally acted as a pass-through for money paid to a client of indicted law firm Milberg Weiss Bershad & Schulman. The federal charges against Milberg Weiss allege that the law form paid more than $11 million in illegal kickbacks to clients who served as lead plaintiffs in class action cases.
Purtich pleaded guilty to not reporting to tax authorities $879,868 in payments from Milberg Weiss to a client who served as a plaintiff in 60 securities lawsuits. Purtich admitted receiving over $3.5 million for the benefit of the client between 1992 and 1996.
Milberg Weiss denies that any of the money paid to Purtich was earmarked for the client. The firm contends that the money paid to Purtich constituted legitimate referral fees.
Tags: felony, Milberg Weiss, kickbacks, class action
