Corzine seeks to dismiss trustee’s lawsuit over MF Global collapse

(Reuters) – Jon Corzine and two of his top executives at defunct commodities brokerage MF Global sought Monday to have dismissed a lawsuit accusing them of hastening the firm’s 2011 collapse.

In court papers filed on Monday in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Manhattan, lawyers for Corzine, former Chief Operating Officer Bradley Abelow and former Chief Financial Officer Henri Steenkamp lambasted allegations that they acted with gross negligence as the company teetered on the brink.

Louis Freeh, the trustee that wound down MF Global’s bankrupt parent, filed the lawsuit in April, accusing Corzine of pursuing a high-risk business strategy that culminated in the brokerage’s destruction.

“Each of the defendants is protected by the business judgment rule, which serves to bar claims based precisely on the kind of Monday morning quarterbacking in which the trustee is now engaged,” the defendants said in Monday’s filing.

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