Oppenheimer Exits Lawsuit Over Ponzi Scheme Tied to Ex-Employee

Four Ponzi scheme victims can’t proceed with their suit against Oppenheimer & Co. in Washington state despite a former brokerage employee’s alleged role in causing their losses, a federal court ruled.

New York-based Oppenheimer lacks a sufficient relationship to the in-state fraudulent activity for the US District Court for the Western District of Washington to exercise personal jurisdiction over the investment bank and brokerage, Judge Benjamin H. Settle said Monday. “It is unlikely, and frankly unforeseeable, that by doing business in Washington, Oppenheimer risked non-customer Washington residents falling for a Ponzi scheme run by a Georgia-based employee,” Settle said.

But ...