Judge Lewis Kaplan, a Bill Clinton appointee, was known for his no-nonsense approach in the courtroom.
U.S. District Judge Lewis Kaplan in Manhattan was assigned to hear the criminal case against FTX co-founder Sam Bankman-Fried (SBF) after previous judge Ronnie Abrams recused himself.
On December 24, federal Judge Ronnie Abrams recused himself from the SBF case, citing a potential conflict of interest.
According to Abrams, her husband, a partner at Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP, provided legal advice to FTX, a now-defunct cryptocurrency exchange, in 2021. She also revealed that her husband represented parties that might object to the cryptocurrency exchange's bankruptcy proceedings.
The U.S. Department of Justice accused Bankman-Fried of using customer funds to support Alameda Research's cryptocurrency trading business, resulting in billions of dollars in losses.
While Bankman-Fried acknowledged that FTX had shortcomings in its risk management, he said he was not criminally liable for the fraud charges.
SBF was released on $250 million bail on Dec. 22 and was ordered to remain detained at his parents’ home in California after being extradited from the Bahamas to New York.
Lewis Kaplan was known for his no-nonsense approach in court
Kaplan was appointed to the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York in 1994 by President Bill Clinton.
Over the years, Kaplan was known to grow impatient with lawyers on both sides. During his career, he presided over many high-profile trials and famous financial cases, including the Bitcoin savings and trust case, in which Kaplan sentenced company owner Trendon Shavers to 18 months in prison.
He is also currently overseeing two civil lawsuits filed by former Elle magazine columnist E Jean Carroll against former President Trump.
