At Thursday's Court of Appeals hearing, it was announced that a 2nd hearing was needed and that a court-appointed lawyer would argue Judge Jed Rakoff's position in the SEC-Citigroup Settlement Case.  At the time, the statement seemed odd, and today, Judge Rakoff selected an attorney to represent his position - rather than have the courts select one to serve on his behalf. Federal District Judge Rakoff in New York had recommended that John "Rusty" Wing, a partner at Lankler Siffert & Wohl in New York, and a former colleague, be appointed to argue on behalf of Mr. Rakoff's controversial decision to reject a fraud settlement between the SEC and Citigroup over mortgage-back securities that Citi sold to investors. Mr. Wing's task will be to persuade the 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals that Judge Rakoff was correct when he voided the $285 million civil settlement on 11/28/11.  Rakoff , who will not be paid for his work, according to a Friday order announcing the court's appointment.  Technically, Wing will not represent Rakoff but will argue in support of his position. Mr. Wing's job will an uphill battle, given that the 3-judge panel said at Thursday's hearing that "the SEC and Citigroup have made a strong showing of likelihood of success" that the rejection should be set aside. No date has been set for the appeal. The case is: SEC v. Citigroup Global Markets Inc, 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals, No. 11-5227. Representation in the case is, as follows:

• For the SEC: Jacob Stillman, Jeffrey Berger, Mark Pennington - all staff lawyers.
• For Citi: Brad Karp, Susanna Buergel, Mark Pomerantz, Walter Rieman, Theodore Wells Jr of Paul, Weiss.

For further details, click to access the referenced story:  [Reuters, 3/16/12].