Federal judge approves Zeek fees and expenses

 

Published: Tuesday, December 3, 2013 at 1:58 p.m.

Last Modified: Tuesday, December 3, 2013 at 1:58 p.m.

A federal judge approved nearly $1.6 million in fees and expenses this week for the team recovering money connected to alleged Ponzi scheme Zeek Rewards.

The money to be paid to the team of attorneys and data consultants stems from the total being collected for “net losers” of the alleged scheme.

U.S. District Judge Graham Mullen approved about $1 million for attorneys and staff from the Charlotte law firm McGuireWoods, including receiver Ken Bell. Mullen also approved about $622,000 for staff at FTI Consulting, which the receiver hired to sort through the company’s dense and complex records.

The total granted to the receivership team is less than .51 percent of the nearly $330 million collected for “net losers” to date, according to court documents filed in U.S. District Court in Charlotte. The money was requested for work completed during the third quarter, from July 1 to Sept. 30.

Including the latest quarter, Mullen has authorized about $5.2 million for fees and expenses for the receivership team. Bell said that amounts to less than 1.7 percent of the total recovery.