Madoff Judge Maintains Seal on JPMorgan Banking Secrets

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Madoff Judge Maintains Seal on JPMorgan Banking Secrets
April 12, 2011, 6:05 PM EDT

April 12 (Bloomberg) -- The judge overseeing the liquidation of Bernard L. Madoff’s defunct investment firm maintained the seal on JPMorgan Chase & Co.’s banking practices while ordering the public disclosure of some names in lawsuits seeking to claw back profits.

Trustee Irving Picard, who has filed more than 1,000 suits seeking $100 billion for the conman’s investors, said last month there was no “compelling reason” why names of key people in his complaints should be blanked out. The unsealing was requested by the New York Times Co., WNBC-TV, NBC News and CNBC.

“The public has a qualified First Amendment right to access certain judicial documents,” U.S. Bankruptcy Judge Burton Lifland said in a written order filed in Manhattan today, citing previous cases. At the same time, bankruptcy law protects trade secrets and confidential research, he said.

JPMorgan, sued for $6.4 billion by Picard, had asked the judge to guard the confidentiality of information about the New York-based bank’s so-called know-your-customer program and anti- money laundering procedures.

http://www.businessweek.com/news/2011-04-12/madoff-judge-maintains-seal-on-jpmorgan-banking-secrets.html

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