[JURIST] An order made public Thursday awarded Madoff trustee Irving Picard the right to appeal the dismissal of his $19 billion suit against JPMorgan Chase & Co. [corporate website]. >Judge Colleen McMahon of the US District Court for the Southern District of New York [official website] indicated in her order that, in the interest of an expedited decision, both parties had agreed to move forward with the appeal [Reuters report]. Last month, McMahon dismissed [JURIST report] Picard’s suit seeking damages from banks and third parties for the victims of Bernard Madoff’s Ponzi scheme. In her decision, Mcmahon concluded that Picard did not have standing to sue on behalf of the victims. Picard was designated by the court in 2008 as trustee [official website] of the assets seized from the Ponzi scheme.

Lawsuits against JPMorgan continue to be brought to court. Last month, two former Bernard Madoff [JURIST news archive] investors filed a proposed class-action lawsuit against JP Morgan seeking recovery of $19 billion for allegedly aiding Madoff in orchestrating his Ponzi scheme. Another case from earlier this year was dismissed [opinion] against HSBC Holdings [corporate website] because the trustee had “no personal stake in the outcome of the controversy.” Picard plans to appeal this decision. The first payouts to Madoff’s victims were approved [JURIST report] by the court in July. Picard filed almost 60 lawsuits [JURIST report] for victims of Madoff’s fraud in December 2010 after being appointed trustee [order] in 2008. Madoff pleaded guilty [JURIST report] to 11 counts of securities fraud stemming from his Ponzi scheme in March 2009, and was sentenced [JURIST report] in June 2009 to 150 years in prison.