Ex-Willkie Farr lawyer in 'Varsity Blues' scam can practice again in NY

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Gordon Caplan, co-Chairman of Willkie Farr & Gallagher law company leaves the federal courthouse after facing charges in a nationwide college admissions cheating scheme in Boston,
Gordon Caplan, co-Chairman of Willkie Farr & Gallagher law company leaves the federal courthouse after facing charges in a nationwide college admissions cheating scheme in Boston, Massachusetts, U.S., April 3, 2019. REUTERS/Gretchen Ertl
  • Gordon Caplan pleaded guilty, served a month in prison after paying $75,000 to rig daughter's ACT exam
  • New York appellate court gave Caplan two-year suspension from practicing law, retroactively dated start to Nov 2019

(Reuters) - Attorney regulators in New York have reinstated Gordon Caplan as an attorney after he pleaded guilty and served time in prison for his role in the "Varsity Blues" U.S. college admissions scandal.

New York's Appellate Division, First Department said Tuesday there was no opposition to reinstating Caplan, the former co-chairman of large New York-founded law firm Willkie, Farr & Gallagher.

Caplan has been unable to practice law since November 2019, after he served a month in prison for his role in the largest college admissions scam ever uncovered in the United States.

The New York appellate court hit Caplan with a two-year suspension in February 2021 but retroactively dated its start to November 2019. In December, Caplan asked the appellate court to be reinstated.

Caplan was among 57 people charged by federal prosecutors in Boston over a scheme in which wealthy parents conspired with California consultant William "Rick" Singer to fraudulently secure their children's college admissions.

Dozens of other parents charged in the case have pleaded guilty as well.

A federal judge in Boston on Wednesday sentenced a private equity financier to 15 months in prison, the longest sentence issued in the scandal so far.

Caplan, 54, pleaded guilty in 2019 to paying $75,000 to rig his daughter's ACT exam, by having an associate of Singer's pose as a proctor and correct her wrong answers.

Caplan said in an email Thursday he was "humbled by the court's decision."

"My goal has been, and continues to be, to prove worthy of the reinstatement," he added.

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David Thomas reports on the business of law, including law firm strategy, hiring, mergers and litigation. He is based out of Chicago. He can be reached at d.thomas@thomsonreuters.com and on Twitter @DaveThomas5150.

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