Birkenfeld billions

Je Reviens - unfortunately sometimes life and work just get in the way of blogging - so let's just blame my recent silence on 'Events, dear boy, events.'

So, back to business, to find that the wonderful UBS/Birkenfeld story has moved into even more interesting territory, as Brad the whistleblower bites back.  I've long thought there was endless money to be made out of this saga and that Bradley Birkenfeld would come out of prison, write a best selling book, then Hollywood would come along and make a great film out of the whole thing.

Who to play Birkenfeld?  That's a tricky one - depending on whether you view him as  hero, or  villain. Tom Cruise for either, perhaps?

Anyway, to update: The New York Times is reporting that Brad Birkenfeld and his lawyers are hoping to use a new federal whistleblower law to claim a multibillion-dollar reward from the American Government.

Birkenfeld, who begins his prison term in January, is being represented by the executive director of the National Whistleblowers Center, Stephen M. Kohn. It was Mr Kohn who sucessfully represented Linda Tripp when she helped to expose the Monica Lewinsky scandal in the Clinton years.

According to the NY Times, Mr Kohn says, 'We are seeking at least several billion dollars.' (Big thinking here, does no-one think in terms of millions anymore?)
Legal experts say the odds in their favour are pretty good.

Brad Birkenfeld pleaded guilty in June 2008 to conspiring to defraud the US government, but - surprise, surprise -  in spite of that, whistleblowing experts think he has a persuasive case to make a claim.

A spokesman at Phillip & Cohen, a law firm that specializes in large whistle-blower claims,  is reported as saying 'It was very useful information from inside UBS that Mr Birkenfeld provided. The law is pretty clear on this."

Mr Kohn stands to reap a fortune if Bradley Birkenfeld wins.

I have to 'fess up here and say I have nothing but admiration for this display of chutzpah. Can't blame Birkenfeld for trying and if he and Kohn bring this off they deserve a standing ovation. But now that Birkenfeld himself has opened the gates to an absolute onslaught on tax havens, when they get their billions where will they put them?

Off shore account, anyone . . .