Legal News

Seth ?Appellate? Waxman to Argue for GenRe-AIG Defendant

By Amir Efrati

Seth Waxman, attorney for prisoners detained at Guantanamo Bay, during oral arguments at the Supreme Court, Dec. 5, 2007. (AP/Lawrence Jackson)

Fresh from his victory in the KPMG tax shelter appeal and buzz about being on a short list of possible SCOTUS nominees under President-Elect Barack Obama, WilmerHale’s Seth Waxman just picked up another interesting case: repping one of the insurance execs convicted earlier this year of conspiring to help insurer AIG fraudulently boost its financials.

Waxman’s new client, the former CEO of reinsurer General Re, Ron Ferguson, and four other defendants haven’t been sentenced yet, so the 2nd Circuit briefs won’t be filed until well into 2009. (For prior LB coverage of Waxman, a Solicitor General under Clinton, click here, here and here.)

In the meantime, Waxman, 56, has plenty on his plate. Before turning his attention to the General Re-AIG case, Waxman has another 2nd Circuit case to argue — this time for TV network ABC, which was sued by the FCC for a 2003 episode of NYPD Blue that showed a naked female’s buttocks. (Earlier this week, Waxman wrapped up oral arguments before the Supremes on behalf of drugmaker Wyeth.)

Unfortunately, Waxman won’t be able to make it to the big bash tonight in Georgetown for Gibson Dunn’s Ted Olson, another appellate veteran who’s celebrating his 50th argument before the Supremes with D.C. legal bigwigs such as Williams & Connolly’s Brendan Sullivan. Olson notched his 51st SCOTUS argument on Monday, while Waxman stands at 53.

What does all that experience add up to? Well, earlier this year we watched Waxman at the 2nd Circuit oral argument involving the KPMG tax shelter defendants. We couldn’t help but notice how relaxed he appeared; at times, while arguing before the judges, he even put his hand in his pocket.

Full post as published by Law Blog - WSJ.com on November 06, 2008 (boomark / email).