Lawyers withdraw from Dakota race bias suit amid hedge funder’s financial woes

Alphonse Fletcher Jr. and the Dakota
Alphonse Fletcher Jr. and the Dakota

Hedge-fund manager Alphonse Fletcher Jr.’s race discrimination lawsuit against the Dakota has hit a major setback that could put the case on ice, according to the Wall Street Journal. The law firm Fletcher hired to represent him, Kasowitz Benson Torres & Friedman, has asked the court to withdraw the case, due to “non-payment of very substantial legal fees.”

Fletcher sued the historic Central Park West building after the co-op board rejected his attempt to purchase the apartment neighboring his own in 2010. He claimed that the board discriminated against him because he is African-American. The co-op board fired back that his bid contained “red flags,” suggesting he could not afford the unit.

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Since then, one of Fletcher’s major funds, Fletcher International, filed for bankruptcy protection at the end of June, and a court-appointed trustee has taken over control of the fund.

Kasowitz Benson is the fifth-largest creditor of Fletcher International, with a claim of $293,517, according to court documents cited by the Journal. [WSJ]Christopher Cameron