Stratford Awarded $100K in JP Morgan Settlement

The town of Stratford has become eligible for more than $100,000 in restitution following a multimillion-dollar settlement reached with JP Morgan Chase & Co. (JMPC), Attorney General George Jepsen announced this week.

Stratford joins nine other Connecticut municipalities, agencies and not-for-profit entities that were rewarded restitution in the $92 million nationwide settlement.

The ongoing investigation into alleged anticompetitive and fradulent conduct in the municipal bond derivates industry "revealed collusive and deceptive conduct involving certain individuals at JMPC and other financial institutions and certain brokers with whom they had working relationships," according to Jepsen's office.

"Issuers including state and municipal government agencies and not-for-profit organizations entrusted taxpayer money to JPMC, and the company violated that trust by steering those funds into rigged or tainted municipal derivatives contracts," Jepsen said in a statement.

"While it is up to each, individual entity to decide whether or not they want to participate in the settlement," he continued, "I believe that the settlement is appropriate and will compensate these entities for the losses arising from this financial institution’s wrongful conduct."

The Connecticut entities eligible to participate in the settlement and receive restitution totaling $1,035,233.12 are:

• The Town of Stratford – eligible for $100,426.14
• Quinnipiac University – eligible for $280,669.12
• Fairfield University – eligible for $243,371.96
• The Corporation for Independent Living – eligible for $213,424.99 
• The South Central Connecticut Regional Water Authority – eligible for $128,341.50
• Yale University – eligible for $19,918.50 
• The Town of Fairfield – eligible for $15,858.61
• The City of Bridgeport – eligible for $14,166.03
• The Connecticut Housing Finance Authority – eligible for $9,850.88
• The Westminster School – eligible for $9,205.41