[Happy Camper]

In retrospect I was wrong to include Earl in my last post. You are right Purk. I felt Earl did market SP pretty hard when I was looking for an amp but he didn't hold a gun to my head. I made the choice.
 
Sorry Earl. Wish you were still posting as I miss your tube knowledge.

 

[DavidMahler]

Quote:

I just got off the phone with paypal for the zillionth time.
 
They are unwilling to help, but they continue to support Mikhail Rotenberg on eBay.
 
At this point I am filing a Class Action Lawsuit.
 
If you used paypal to be robbed by Mikhail Rotenberg please email me at
 
Liszt_Sonata_in_b_minor@yahoo.com
 
Please note this offer is only extended to those who were flat out robbed by Single Power, this does not include those who currently own a defective Single Power.  You had to have used paypal for these payments.
 
I am looking to file a class-action lawsuit with a legal team.
 
-Thank you.
 
NOTE: do not PM me on head-fi.  Use my email address for this.

bringing post onto new page
 

 

[revolink24]

Quote:

bringing post onto new page
 

 
Have you talked to a lawyer? I know Uncle Erik has stated before that a class action might not be the ideal solution.
 

 

[FallenAngel]

Reposted my conversation with lawyer earlier...
Quote:

I just spoke with my in-house council. This is what she recommends:

1) Submit case to BBB.

2) Contact Colorado Attorney General's office, they should have a consumer protection division that can handle such a case. EDIT: SinglePower is based here.

3) See if you can find a lawyer from the Attorney General's office that will handle this case and perhaps build a class-action if you can provide proof (this thread has enough people that could provide facts and PayPal transaction records). The key would be to find a lawyer that will be willing to work only charge for expenses and not their time until case is settled. This may be easier than before because the economy has left quite a few lawyers out of work.

Note: Collection cases can be frustrating because there is enough work to get money off somebody that lawyers can charge 50% of collection to get it (must find the money, paper-trail, banks, etc).

Good luck.

I also got the feeling from the lawyer that under most circumstances, single person cases for fairly small amounts (a few thousand dollars) are often not worthwhile for the attorney.  A class-action on the other hand, that sounds like it should have some serious potential.

 

[DavidMahler]

A class action suit is the only option I see as considerable.  I am owed $9000, an attorney will want more than $9000 for their time.  Mikhail is banking on this and therefore has gotten away with everything.
 
I feel as though a lawsuit against paypal is warranted considering they have not protected their buyers but continue to support Mikhail, knowingly....I have told them about Mikhail's ebay account for a year and it is still active.
 
Once I get all the emails consolodated, what everyone is owed.  I will be contacting an attorney with the total amount and discuss further monetary reimbursement.

 

[Uncle Erik]

You all ought to keep a close eye on the statute of limitations.

 

[purk]

I was lucky enough to get most of my money back once I returned my ES-1 to Mikhail 2 years ago.  The amp was a straight trade for a pair of R10.  I believe Mikhail later sold that R10 (284) for 6.5k.  Good luck on this David.  I will inform Tom Hankins of this tomorrow.  I believe he lost over 6.5k on the SP Meastro XLR.  I talked to Earl long time ago and I believe Mikhail never did return 2 or 3 of his SP Supra amplifiers, therefore, in that respect...he is out nearly 3 to 4k himself.  The reason Earl and many senior members were pushing SP so hard during the day b/c the sound of his amps, which I continue to agree.

 

[XXII]

Quote:

You all ought to keep a close eye on the statute of limitations.

I'm not familiar with American law but surely the statute of limitations is more than 3 years?

 

[DavidMahler]

The statute of limitations for fraud claim in Colorado is 3 years, HOWEVER.....it is not from date of payment, but date of when you realized you were being frauded.  This is a grey area.
 
If enough people are willing to join me, I am sure that I can have an attorney who will be happy to take on the case.
 
Please remember to email me and  do not disclose anything personal about your paypal account in the forum.
 
I'm sure Jude and all the moderators would prefer that this suit be handled privately as quickly as possible as to not bring head-fi into this.  Once people are aware of what is going on, I will remove all my posts regarding this class action suit.

 

[DannyB]

I'm confused. I'm not an attorney, I just hire them. It seems there may be two issues; one being a civil suit and the other possibly being a criminal action. Does the alleged fraud rise to the level of a felony and if so Mikhail may be at risk for prison time if found guilty. Any expert opinions on this would be of interest. Does the state attorney general have some responsibility regarding this aspect?
 
While it doesn't help those who have lost money, and may likely never get it back, at least he "pays" for his actions, if convicted, by spending some time in prison. Just curious.

 

[Uncle Erik]

Quote:

I'm not familiar with American law but surely the statute of limitations is more than 3 years?

Maybe and maybe not.  It can be slippery and I'm not going to answer it.  But it's been awhile and you folk better get on it.  Soon. 
 
Quote:

I'm confused. I'm not an attorney, I just hire them. It seems there may be two issues; one being a civil suit and the other possibly being a criminal action. Does the alleged fraud rise to the level of a felony and if so Mikhail may be at risk for prison time if found guilty. Any expert opinions on this would be of interest. Does the state attorney general have some responsibility regarding this aspect?
 
While it doesn't help those who have lost money, and may likely never get it back, at least he "pays" for his actions, if convicted, by spending some time in prison. Just curious.

Yes.  The local district attorney or state attorney general could bring criminal charges.  You can try contacting them.
 
Anything else would be a civil action.

 

[Frank I]

Quote:

bringing post onto new page
 

from what I know of class action and I am not an attorney you need three people and the only one who usually benefits is the layers. If Mikhail is in the US then he commited mail and wire fraud and the Federal DA in the state where he is located would press charges and seek an indictment. You also can file and swear out a complaint and have him arrested. If he is not residing in the states then really nothing you can do.

 

[HeadphoneAddict]

If anyone knows where I can get a used or new PSU for my SP Square Wave XL balanced amp, please PM me.  
 
Mine died last Xmas, was replaced with a Sigma 22 in March which was used and had issues before I got it, and it died after a few weeks. I don't even know which pins on the back of my amp are what anymore (+12, -12, ground, etc).

 

[Uncle Erik]

from what I know of class action and I am not an attorney you need three people and the only one who usually benefits is the layers. If Mikhail is in the US then he commited mail and wire fraud and the Federal DA in the state where he is located would press charges and seek an indictment. You also can file and swear out a complaint and have him arrested. If he is not residing in the states then really nothing you can do.

Those evil lawyers.

Based on pure speculation, my gut says you won't have big litigation costs. In order to get those, the other side has to actively defend a lawsuit. If the person sued doesn't have the money for that, you'll end up with a default or a quick judgment.

Unfortunately, getting a judgment is the (relatively) easy part. Collecting a judgment is something else entirely.

You'll have to give up a percentage, but you can assign a judgment to a hyper-aggressive collection agency. Depending on state law, the collection agent can garnish bank accounts, seize property, haul people in for judgment debtor exams, and much else. Like I said, you'll have to give up a percentage, but an aggressive collector with a judgment can make someone's life pure hell. Especially the judgment debtor exams - those are particularly unpleasant.

This can cause someone to file bankruptcy, which is an issue. However, bankruptcy means that assets are turned over to the Court during the proceedings. Also, a bankruptcy hearing would give you all an opportunity to show up and confront Mikhail.

This isn't legal advice. You need to contact a lawyer and get the process moving.

 

[sachu]

Quote:

Unfortunately, getting a judgment is the (relatively) easy part. Collecting a judgment is something else entirely.
 

+1!! QFMFT!!!