Rookie federal Judge Katherine Forrest has made a big impression in her first big civil case.
The 45-year-old jurist overseeing the complicated case filed by the Securities and Exchange Commission against former Goldman Sachs trader Fabrice Tourre has been winning over the jury and witnesses alike while keeping control of the sniping attorneys in the case.
One witness, Paulson & Co. former No. 2 Paolo Pellegrini, referred to Forrest as the “honorable judge,” as he parried with the SEC’s attorneys last week.
“I didn’t have the benefit of the honorable judge’s instructions,” Pellegrini quipped during one exchange with the SEC’s attorney, Matthew Martens, over his flighty memory.
Tourre is accused by the SEC of misleading investors in the marketing and construction of a 2007 transaction in which hedge fund maestro John Paulson made a winning $1 billion bet.
Forrest, who reportedly gave up millions of dollars in her successful private law practice to pursue her dream job as district judge, even has the jury on her side.
“You’re awesome,” stated a note from the jurors after she sent them doughnuts Friday morning.
Forrest has run a fairly relaxed courtroom, less focused on strict protocol in the complex case, and more about keeping the jurors out of the “weeds,” as she’s put it.
She’s also had to use the iron fist in the velvet glove between oft-sniping lawyers Pamela Chepiga and Sean Coffey representing Tourre on one side, and SEC’s Martens on the other.
“I get the benefit of being the judge up here. I can stop you both,” she said to squabbling lawyers last week during Pellegrini’s sometimes-oddball testimony.
“We should all calm down,” she later said.
However, ultimately Fabrice’s case will come down to the nine-person jury — a point not lost on Forrest, either.
“There are just some things I want to get in the record,” Martens said to the court during one break when the jury was not present.
“It’s not a bench trial,” she countered. “It’s for the jury to understand.”–Mark DeCambre
Cut!
Even Google was searching for answers by the rush of orders for its Chromecast device.
The company didn’t release sales figures for the $35 Chromecast plug, which sends YouTube and Netflix video from smartphones to TVs over WiFi, but orders were virtually halted by the lack of supply.
One sign that sales got too hot: Google stopped offering three free months of Netflix with orders of the key-size HDMI plug-in, indicating the promotion may have become quite expensive.
The content available to Chromecast is still limited, however.
At Google’s New York offices, one engineer told On the Money that even the company was shocked by the sales numbers they were seeing in real time coming from the Google Play store. –Garett Sloane
Sky’s the limit
Penton Media, which pruned more than $200 million in debt when it escaped bankruptcy in 2010, is trying to elevate its revenue with acquisitions.
Last week it purchased Aviation Week magazine and related trade shows from McGraw-Hill, accounting for revenue of around $50 million a year.
Sources estimated the purchase price to be in the $30 million to $50 million range. David Kieselstein, Penton CEO, said there will be no layoffs.
Greg Hamilton, Aviation Week president under M-H, will be the leader of a combined Penton Aviation Group.
Penton had revenue of about $307 million in the fiscal year ending Sept. 30, 2012.–Keith J. Kelly
Cheeks of gold
Good news for gold bugs. The yellow metal, which has had a price bounce recently, has another use: It’s proving popular in skin-care products.
Many are from Orogold Cosmetics, a California-based company that opened its first store in New York this week and has plans to open more locations in the city.
Denise Richards (pictured at left), the actress and former model, has signed on to be the ambassador for the company, whose store on 57th and Lexington offers VIPs complimentary gold facials and private rooms.
Orogold uses 24k gold in all their formulas, for products that cost from $170 to $600. The priciest is $3,000.
The company’s general manager. Shawn Oded, says it saw a niche in the beauty market, since high-end skin care was offered only in department stores.
He says the commodity price affects the cost of making the products.
Richards says she “really sees results” and likes the brand for its ingredients, which also include diamond dust and mother-of-pearl.–Julie Earle-Levine