Legal fees drain millions from Islamic charities

Washington Post via San Francisco Chronicle ^ | November 2, 2003 | Gregory L. Vistica, Washington Post

[sarcasm]

Washington -- Millions of dollars impounded by the government from three Islamic charities accused of financing terrorism have been spent to pay the legal bills of the foundations' attorneys, according to the Treasury Department and the lawyers themselves.

Lawyers for the charities have billed the government for approximately $3 million worth of services that range from filing lawsuits to attempting to unfreeze the charities' assets to handling hundreds of media calls.

[Ken522]

Lawyers must love it when crap like this happens!

[ROCKLOBSTER]

I think the property and casualty (insurance) industry needs to sue the collective pants off of Saudi Arabia and these Maniacal Murdering Muslim (3-M) charities for 9/11.

Checked your homeowner's rates lately?

[Valin]

Lawyers for the charities have billed the government for approximately $3 million worth of services that range from filing lawsuits to attempting to unfreeze the charities' assets to handling hundreds of media calls.

Billed the government? I don't get it.

[GeekDejure]

Billed the government? I don't get it.

I kinda sorta figure this would be as good a time as any for Uncle Sam to officially declare bankruptcy, eh? heh heh heh (dirty laugh)

.

[Valin]

The practice of allowing assets frozen in the domestic war on terrorism to be relinquished to the organizations accused of financing groups such as al Qaeda has alarmed several members of Congress.

"They ought to be paid by the people who are hiring them," but not with the frozen money if it is associated with the financing of terrorism, said Sen.

Arlen Specter, R-Pa. "It's really a fraudulent conversion, a bait and switch."

A Republican staffer on the Senate Banking, Housing and Urban Affairs Committee said the Treasury guidelines allow for the payment of "reasonable" attorney costs. "But what we're seeing is these fees are exorbitant." At the same time, some donors to the charities under scrutiny -- Holy Land Foundation for Relief and Development, in Texas; and the Benevolence International Foundation and Global Relief Foundation, both of Illinois -- are dismayed to see their contributions spent on legal fees rather than humanitarian causes, their representatives said.


Ok now I understand.
Freeper tip o the day.
Read the article...talk about your radical concept!

[friendly]

Lawyers for the charities have billed the government for approximately $3 million worth of services that range from filing lawsuits to attempting to unfreeze the charities' assets to handling hundreds of media calls. Billed the government? I don't get it.

I presume billed the government controlled frozen assets... at $350/hour for hallucinatory hours. Who knows where the $3 million will actually go. Time for massive tort reform in this country!!!

[Valin]

Time for massive tort reform in this country!!!

Couldn't agree more.

[friendly]

The Lawyer Industry causes far more injury to the USA on a day-to-day basis than the IslamoFascists could ever dream about.

[mewzilla]

Wonder what the lawyers are doing with the money?

[GeekDejure]

Freeper tip o the day. Read the article...talk about your radical concept!

I did read the article. Good grief... my comment was just a silly joke!!!

[ampat]

Finally something useful for trial lawyers to do.

[Valin]

And a darn funny one it was! :-)