EFTA01110730.pdf

J HN)§O9,Nag3EL Ltd Son 2700 33 WEST MONROE SINN CHICAGO, IL 60603-5404 TELEPHONE: 1435 EAST 85TH Avu44 February 3, 2011 Musuvrn IN 46410 TOSNONE: Vidi?egular Mail and E-Mail: [email protected]. Michelle Ganetis InYOLLCONSONANDIWIL.CON Fowler White Burnett WAIN'S DIRECT Dint NuaL; One Financial Plaza 100 SE Third Avenue, 21° Floor Fort Lauderdale, FL 33394 Re: Epstein v. Rothstein Court No.: 2011 MR 000150 Our File No.: 7879 - 10001 Dear Michelle: I would like to recap the events surrounding the attempted service on Thane Ritchie. As you know, we originally believed that Mr. Ritchie could be served along with Mr. Legamaro at the address in Chicago. This process took several days longer than normal due to the court that signs such orders being dark on the day we filed, and the MLK holiday that following Monday. Mr. Legamaro was served on Wednesday (the day we obtained the signed order); however, we discovered that Mr. Ritchie could not be served there. Mr. Legamaro was not able or willing to tell us where we might find Mr. Ritchie. We then conducted a public records search to find Mr. Ritchie's home address. The records revealed numerous addresses for Mr. Ritchie, spread out in three separate counties, Lake, DuPage and Cook. It appeared that a DuPage address was the most recent, on Hale Street, so we re-filed for an order in that county and attempted to serve Mr. Ritchie there. It turned out that the address was for Ritchie Capital Management. Our process server was told Mr. Ritchie was not in and could not be located. The server left the subpoena and order with the company's legal assistant, who, according to the server, obtained an okay from RCM's corporate counsel in New York, Bill Hobbs. This is reflected in the affidavit of service. I tried to confirm the acceptance of service with Mr. Hobbs, who, after several days and several messages and emails, eventually denied giving authorization. EFTA01110730  JOHNSON S,T.BELL At that point, we were authorized to have an investigator track down Mr. Ritchie's abode. They reviewed both the public records we sent them, their own sources, and did a "discrete drive-by" to confirm that the Howard Street address in DuPage was Mr. Ritchie's abode. We have since obtained an order from DuPage County. As of today, we are sending out the subpoena to the Howard Street address via certified mail. If it is returned with a signed receipt, we're good to go. In the alternative, I am having a process server go out to personally serve him there. Obtaining an accurate address for service was the initial problem. However, it appears that the underlying problem is that Mr. Ritchie does not want to be served, and does not want to be deposed. Should he continue to evade service, we do have options before the court in DuPage to effectuate service and compel his appearance. I'll review those procedures and provide a report once it is clear that the immediate service efforts are unavailing. I regret the difficulty in nailing Mr. Ritchie down. We are sparing no effort to accomplish this at the earliest possible time. Do not hesitate to call if you have any questions or concerns. I will keep you posted as events progress. M c Caste eta Paralega Doc. No. 2635564 EFTA01110731