U.S. District Judge Nancy Atlas of Houston has denied a motion for contempt that R. Allen Stanford filed in his insurance coverage case. On Aug. 19, Stanford filed the motion seeking a contempt finding against Stanford Financial Group’s insurance companies on the ground they allegedly failed to meet a court-ordered reimbursement schedule for his criminal defense costs. Details of the motion are unavailable because it was filed under seal.
But in an Aug. 23 opposition to Stanford’s motion for contempt, the underwriters allege that any delays in legal fee payments to Stanford’s lead criminal defense attorney, Robert S. Bennett of Houston’s Bennett Nguyen Joint Venture, are of Bennett’s own doing. Underwriters Lloyd’s of London and Arch Specialty Insurance Co. alleged in the opposition that they have attempted to accommodate Bennett and have “explained precisely why delays have occurred as a result of Bennett’s own actions.” They alleged Stanford’s motion for contempt “disregards these realities and repeatedly misstates the record.”
