Strike one more for the Bents, who've suffered another blow in court. On Monday he judge in the SEC lawsuit about the Reserve Primary money market fund disallowed a key witness for the defense, reports the Wall Street Journal.

For the full story on the lawsuit so far and the death of the Primary Fund, see MFWire's timeline.

Judge Paul Gardephe prohibited Richard Painter, a University of Minnesota law professor, from testifying at the upcoming Oct. 1 trial. Painter would have described to the jury the panic of the financial crisis and the government's actions related to Lehman Brothers Holdings, a testimony Judge Gardephe believed would present "a grave risk of jury confusion." The trial "is not about whether the government should have more closely supervised Lehman, or about whether it should have rescued Lehman," he wrote in a ruling filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York.

"We are disappointed by this decision but look forward to presenting the balance of our case to the jury," a spokesman for the Bents said in response. The SEC has declined to comment.

Meanwhile, Daniel Pollack, managing partner at New York-based law firm McCarter & English LLP, said the ruling could set a precedent for future financial-crisis cases.  

Edited by: Irene Park


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