US federal prosecutors are expected to indict Melvyn Weiss, founding partner of Milberg Weiss, and bring additional charges against the firm on Thursday (20 September), according to a firm statement and a source familiar with the investigation, writes the National Law Journal.
Another former partner, Steven Schulman, who was indicted last year along with the firm, is expected to plead guilty on Thursday.
The moves come two days after William Lerach, a former Milberg Weiss partner who resigned last month from the firm he founded in 2004, agreed to plead guilty to a federal conspiracy charge as part of the US Government's criminal investigation into kickbacks paid to named plaintiffs.
Prosecutors allege that Milberg Weiss, Schulman and another former partner, David Bershad, collected more than $200m (£99.4m) in attorney fees after paying kickbacks to named plaintiffs. In July, Bershad pleaded guilty to a conspiracy charge.
Late Wednesday Milberg Weiss issued a statement: "Milberg Weiss understands that a second superseding indictment will be issued tomorrow that will include new charges against the firm and also Melvyn Weiss. Mr. Weiss has decided to discontinue his participation in Firm management in order to focus on the defense of the charges against him."
The firm said other partners would be in charge of management and litigation and that Weiss would remain available to clients on a consulting basis.
Weiss' lawyer, Benjamin Brafman, a partner at New York-based Brafman & Associates, did not return calls.
Schulman, who has been fighting charges, is expected to plead guilty to charges relating to the probe, according to a source familiar with the investigation. A judge recently rejected Schulman's motions to dismiss those charges.
Calls to Schulman's lawyers, Gordon Greenberg of McDermott Will & Emery, and Herbert Stern of Stern & Kilcullen, were not returned.
The National Law Journal is a US sister title of Legal Week.