Co-founder of crypto law firm wanted after leak of secret recordings

A Kyle Roche-founded law firm cut ties with the lawyer after a website called Crypto Leaks posted secret recordings of him talking about targeting rivals of a blockchain developer through litigation.

Roche no longer has a stake in Freedman Normand Friedland, renamed from Roche Freedman, according to a firm statement. “We wish Kyle the best in his future endeavors,” the statement said.

The company declined to answer questions about the separation. Roche did not immediately return a phone call seeking comment.

Roche’s exit comes after a judge on Oct. 13 fired the law firm in a class action lawsuit accusing crypto exchange Bitfinex and affiliate Tether of manipulating prices. Roche in the recordings posted in August discusses his relationship with blockchain developer Ava Labs and using litigation as a tactic to target the competition.

Emin Gun Sirer, CEO of Ava Labs, has said his company is not targeting rivals. Roche made false statements about his relationship with Ava Labs to impress potential business partners, he has said.

Roche and Devin “Velvel” Freedman left their jobs at prominent litigation firm Boies Schiller to start a shop in 2019 focusing on practices including crypto and cannabis litigation.

The firm, with more than 20 lawyers in New York, Miami and Boston, has been behind more than a dozen proposed class-action lawsuits against crypto exchanges and token issuers.

Roche was entitled to 19% of fixed equity as of January 2020, according to a partnership agreement disclosed in court as part of a dispute between Roche Freedman and a former equity partner.

The agreement noted that Roche retained Ava Labs as a client in 2019 and that the company had agreed to distribute some tokens to the firm’s partners in exchange for legal services.

Roche is no longer a shareholder in Ava Labs and has ceased serving as an outside advisor, Sirer said in a Sept. 13 post on the website Medium. The company has also begun winding down its relationship with the firm Roche co-founded, a company person familiar with the matter said last week.

After the recordings were posted, the firm unsuccessfully fought disqualification motions in the Bitfinex/Tether action from both the defendants and its co-counsel.

Katherine Polk Failla, a judge in the Southern District of New York, ruled on October 13 that the firm continuing to participate in the case with the “metaphorical baggage” it now has would not be in the best interests of the proposed class.

The firm faces dismissal motions in at least four separate cases, according to federal court documents.

Along with original co-founder Freedman, the new name partners at the renamed firm are Edward Normand and Amos Friedland, both former Boies Schiller attorneys.

“We are focused on continuing to provide our clients with top quality representation and are proud of the firm’s achievements to date,” the firm’s statement said.