Greenwich lawyer placed on leave after cheating-scandal accusation
A lawyer from Greenwich accused of taking part in a college-admissions cheating scandal is now facing professional sanctions as well as federal criminal charges.
Gordon Caplan was named as a participant in an illegal scheme to boost his daughter’s test scores, and now his international law firm has placed him on leave.
“As widely reported, one of our partners, Gordon Caplan, was among the persons charged in the college admissions matter. This is a personal matter and does not involve Willkie or any of its clients. In light of the seriousness of the matter, Mr. Caplan has been placed on a leave of absence from the firm and will have no further firm management responsibilities,” according to a statement from Willkie Farr & Gallagher released Wednesday.
Caplan did not return requests for comment this week. Wilkie Farr is a top law firm with offices in New York City and around the world.
He was among more than 40 parents named in the scheme Tuesday who were charged with conspiracy to commit mail fraud and mail fraud. Caplan appeared Tuesday in U.S. District Court in New York and was released on $500,000 bond.
According to the Department of Justice, the charges of conspiracy to commit mail fraud and honest services mail fraud carry a maximum sentence of 20 years in prison. A fine of $250,000 can also be levied.
Federal prosecutors say Caplan was caught on a wiretap discussing a $75,000 payment to have his daughter’s answers corrected on her ACT test.
The cheating scandal centered on William “Rick” Singer, the now-indicted founder of The Key, a college prep company.
“I can guarantee her a score. If it’s ACT, I can guarantee her a score in the, in the 30s. And if it’s the SAT, I can guarantee her a score in the 1400s,” Singer told Caplan on a wire-tapped phone call released in the criminal complaint.
The two allegedly agreed to a $75,000 payment, according to the federal allegations, which was wired to a fraudulent nonprofit run by Singer on the West Coast.
In all, 50 people were charged Tuesday with bribery and fraud, former women’s soccer coach at Yale and actresses Felicity Huffman and Lori Loughlin, according to documents unsealed in federal court in Boston. Prosecutors said Singer made millions helping rich parents get their kids into elite colleges and universities by cheating on college entrance exams or getting recruited as athletes for sports they don’t play.
Singer guided Caplan through a process that allowed his daughter, who was attending an online high school, to gain special permission to take an ACT exam with an extended time limit. The exam was scheduled to be administered in West Hollywood, Calif., where an alleged conspirator was enlisted to “proctor” the exam and change wrong answers to give the daughter a high score, federal authorities allege.
Caplan was nervous about the scheme, the court filings state. “To be honest, it feels a little weird,” he said on one wiretapped call released by the FBI.
Caplan mentioned the possibility of getting his child into Cornell, where he went as an undergraduate. The plan was for the ACT score to come in at 32 to 34 points, the complaint states. The maximum score is a 36, and the daughter’s highest score on a practice test so far had been 22, the complaint states. The criminal complaint did not specify her final score or where she went to college.