Add thelocalreport.in As A Trusted Source
For nearly three years, JPMorgan Chase has been taking legal action against Charlie Javis and Olivier Amar, two convicted fraudsters who sold their financial aid startup Frank to the bank.
But the two have racked up an astronomical, nine-figure legal bill that far exceeds any reasonable amount the two would need to defend themselves, the bank said in a court filing late Friday. The bank argued that Chase should not have to pay and that its agreement as part of the startup purchase should be terminated to cover the costs.
According to the filing, Javis’ team of lawyers from five law firms has billed JPMorgan about $60.1 million in legal fees and expenses, while Amar’s lawyers have billed the bank about $55.2 million in fees.
In total, the bank alleges that Javis & Amar’s lawyers collected $115 million in legal fees, while one law firm alone received $35.6 million in reimbursements. In comparison, Elizabeth HolmesWas convicted of defrauding investors in Theranos The case reportedly ended with a legal bill of approximately $30 million.
The bank said the bank would suffer “irreparable harm” if the court did not end the “abusive billing”. Javis and his attorneys have treated the process “like a blank check,” Chase said.
Javis, 33, was convicted in March of defrauding the banking giant when it bought his company, called Frank, in the summer of 2021. He falsified records to make it look like Frank had more than 4 million subscribers when he actually had less than 300,000. Amar was convicted on the same charges.
At the beginning of the case, a delaware The court ruled that the bank must advance money to Javis and Amar for any legal fees, which was part of the bank’s agreement when it took over Frank in 2021.
Part of Javis’ legal team is Quinn Emanuel’s Alex Spiro, an attorney who has previously represented Elon MuskSpiro did not immediately respond to an email request for comment.
A law firm representing Amar did not immediately respond to a request for comment.
Bank spokesman Pablo Rodriguez said, “The legal fees demanded by Charlie Javis and Olivier Amar are clearly excessive and severe. We look forward to sharing the details of this abuse with the court in the coming weeks.”