Greed, Madness and Ruination on Wall Street

They will become poster boys in the Rogues Gallery of Wall Street'08

Bernie Madoff and Marc Drier

Madoff's self described 50 billion dollar Ponzi scheme is the Granddaddy of All Ponzis while Drier, though not nearly in the same league of dollar devastation, nevertheless makes legal history by conducting a 380 million dollar swindle through the auspices of a law firm.

And the devastation will be enormous. Think Louis Winthorp III in the first part of "Trading Places" in his Santa Clause outfit, jamming salmon fillet down his tunic from the buffet, and staggering drunk and homeless outside of his former securities firm. Except here, there's no secret orange juice crop report to save the day by insider trading. Or is there?

More likely, non-dischargeability in bankruptcy will be playing in a courthouse in Manhattan.

Bernie's victims Marc's Maelstrom

Come to know, understand and love the Uniform Fraudulent Transfer Act. Those hapless souls who recently managed to obtain some return on their original investments in these schemes will become transported to an alternate universe (or Purgatory, for traditionalists among you) when the bankruptcy trustee or receiver wields UFTA and preference avoidance powers to undo and recover those payments from the victims, now twice looted, as fraudulent conveyances.

The Madoff secret recipe for running a multi-billion dollar securities Ponzi scam

Stay tuned.