A federal judge has awarded trustee Irving H. Picard and his team of lawyers liquidating Bernard L. Madoff’s investment firm some $24.6 million in interim counsel fees. Southern District of New York Bankruptcy Judge Burton Lifland on Thursday awarded about $672,000 in fees to Picard and $23.9 million in fees to Baker & Hostetler for Oct. 1 through Jan. 31. All told, the judge has awarded Picard and his attorneys about $62 million in fees.
Last month, Picard reported that “notwithstanding the monumental and unprecedented task faced by the Trustee, substantial progress” has been made in “reviewing and determining customer claims.” However, he has come under fire from many investors who have protested his “cash-in/cash out” approach to calculating claims.
