By April 1, 2005
The criminal charges against Martha Stewart, the Enron scandal and charges of security law violations by accounting firm Arthur Anderson are all among recent white collar criminal law cases that have garnered media attention in recent years. As part of the fifth annual Korn lecture, white collar crime lawyer Richard M. Strassberg ’85 spoke at the Cornell law school yesterday. Strassberg has been on the front lines of many of these high-profile cases. The annual Korn lecture is made possible by Cornell alum Henry H. Korn ’68, currently a partner in LePatner and Associates in New York City. The annual talk is intended to introduce the audience, many of whom are current Cornell law students, to people who have chosen to embark on various careers in law. “The people who come here to speak are fascinating people who do fascinating things,” Korn said. “We are very happy to have this year’s speaker. Richard Strassberg has been involved in a lot of high profile cases,” said Stacy Wiley, Associate Director for Career Services at the law school. Korn spoke briefly about this year’s speaker. “Richard and I met not as colleagues, but as adversaries in a court hall in 1996,” he recounted. Strassberg, a well known white collar criminal defense lawyer, most recently represented former Merrill Lynch broker Peter Bacanovic, a co-defendant in the Martha Stewart criminal case. He is currently a partner in the litigation department at Goodwin Proctor LLP and is chair of its White Collar Crime & Government Investigations Practice. In a talk titled “From Cornell to the Courthouse: Representing High Profile Clients in Criminal Cases,” Strassberg spoke about the many challenges and pressures surrounding high profile cases. In particular, Strassberg spoke about the role the media played in many of these cases, and the challenges stemming from dealing with the press when defending a “super-celebrity” client. Recounting his experiences when defending Bacanovic, Strassberg said, “the Martha Stewart case was one like few others. It generated so much public interest … other cases pale in comparison to the [public] scrutiny, which is part of the everyday life of a lawyer in high profile cases.” According to Strassberg, many facts and circumstances surrounding the trial were distorted by the media. “Martha Stewart was not convicted and not charged with insider trading [of her ImClone stocks],” Strassberg reiterated, although much of the public perceives this to be the case because of the way the trial was played out in the media and popular press. “The case was not about insider trading, but whether she lied to those who she talked to in the government.” Strassberg said that the media simply “wanted to portray Martha Stewart, the ‘icon of home living,’ as guilty of a crime.” In addition, Stewart was not the only defendant in the trial, and ultimately, though Bacanovic was sentenced to serve a five-month criminal sentence for lying to federal investigators, he was acquitted of six of the eight offenses with which he was initially charged. Strassberg spoke of the difficulty of upholding the “staple of basic criminal jurisprudence,” saying: “We are innocent until proven guilty: the bedrock of our system” in high profile cases that come to the attention of the U.S. government. “There is a double standard,” Strassberg said, when such cases come to the attention of the government. “These cases will not be treated the same way [as other cases]. The prosecution is sensitive to the media. They know that they are often perceived as being soft on the rich, on the powerful. People in the limelight provide the opportunity to send a deterrent message.” In a development in the Bacanovic case that “was so unbelievable it could only be true” the government even put an expert on the stand who was later convicted of perjury in lying about laboratory tests and methods. This same expert’s testimony was supposed to be used to undermine the defense. Strassberg himself has had to deal with an extraordinary amount of media attention when representing high profile clients. He recounted one incident when he was “hunted down” by television anchor Greta Van Susteren while vacationing with friends at the Hamptons. “It is tempting to exploit [media] attention,” he advised those in the audience, “but in then end, you have to ask, ‘is it going to help the client?’ and not fall into the trap.” Strassberg spoke briefly about the early years of his law career, as he recounted his dislike for public speaking, and his rewarding experience clerking for a magistrate after law school. From an initial fear of raising his hand in tort class, to his present career as a high profile criminal lawyer, Strassberg emphasized to his audience, “Things change; a career in law will give you a lot of opportunities.”Archived article by Samira ChandwaniSun Staff Writer
By April 1, 2005
If there’s one thing the women’s lacrosse team has shown to opponents in its last three contests — all wins, including two over higher ranked opponents — it is that the Red possesses exceptional depth on offense. Not only has the No. 14 Cornell squad (4-2, 1-0 Ivy) been led in scoring by a different player in each of those victories, but it has also featured as many as seven different goal scorers in each of those games — a statistic the Red hopes will help against Ivy rival Princeton tomorrow. “We’re definitely become more comfortable knowing we can all score,” said freshman Katherine Simmons. “We’ve been going to goal and finishing strong.” Nevertheless, even with an offense as deep as an Ithaca gorge, the Red will face an uphill battle when Princeton comes to town for a showdown at Schoellkopf. The No. 4 Tigers team (5-2, 1-0 Ivy) arrives on the East Hill having already beaten three top 10 teams, including its most recent 13-12 overtime triumph at No. 8 Georgetown. The national runners-up a season ago after completing an undefeated regular season, Princeton features an attack spearheaded by a pair of lethal scoring threats. Seniors Lindsey Biles and Elizabeth Pillion have already combined for 47 total points including 21 and 15 goals respectively. Meanwhile, the Red will also have to keep an eye on sophomore Kathleen Miller who is third on the team in points with nine goals and five assists in the season’s early going. “They are very talented,” Simmons said. “We’re going to have show up ready to play and make sure we have strong team defense.” Defensively, senior goalie Sarah Kolodner has been strong in net for the Tigers while starting all seven games. The net minder owns a 8.43 goals against average while stopping 48.1 percent of the shots she faces. Kolodner proved to be a key in Princeton’s recent win over the Hoyas, coming up with a crucial save in the final minutes of overtime to preserve the close victory. Cornell, however, appears primed to turn Kolodner’s luck around. Scoring an average of a cool baker’s dozen in its last three games, the Red’s attack has looked unstoppable at times. “We’ve been playing really well,” Simmons said. “We’ve really been trusting each other with the passes and then finishing strong.” Remarkable individual performances by Cornell’s players have been the ignition to this most recent offensive explosion. Junior Allison Schindler earned Ivy League Offensive Player of the Week honors after notching six goals in the team’s 12-10 upset of No. 13 Pennsylvania last weekend. Meanwhile, freshman Courtney Farrell and sophomore Lindsey Moore each had breakout games Wednesday night, scoring five and four goals, respectively, in Cornell’s 14-11 victory over Colgate. At the same time, the Red’s leading scorer, senior Kristen Smith — 14 goals — as well as sophomore Margaux Viola and first year players Noelle Dowd and Katherine Simmons have been consistent offensive contributors. The extent of the Red’s depth and ability to defer to teammates is most clearly revealed in Schindler’s play over the past few games. After putting up a half-dozen goal performance against the Quakers, the junior — known for setting up teammates’ scores rather than getting her own — only took one shot against the Raiders while contributing two assists. Though the offense has looked strong, the Red must shore up any holes that still remain in its defensive play. Allowing over ten goals a game, the team has suffered from allowing opponents to enjoy an overall advantage in draw controls and fouls. In goal, junior Maggie Fava has seen the bulk of Cornell’s playing time, compiling a 3-2-0 record while turning aside 42 of the 93 shots on goal she has faced. Archived article by Scott ReichSun Staff Writer