The Receiver aims to provide as much information as possible without impairing the integrity of any ongoing investigations. The Receiver will post answers to frequently asked questions below, as appropriate.
If you have questions that you wish answered, please send them to info@madisontimberreceiver.com.
Submitting questions and receiving answers does not create any attorney-client relationship with the Receiver. The Receiver’s job is to recover money and assets for the benefit of all. The Receiver cannot represent you personally in any matter connected to any of these cases.
Questions and answers to-date (most recent first):
06/30/2021
Question 25: I was served with a subpoena in the in the federal civil case Alysson Mills vs. The UPS Store, Inc., et al., No. 3:19-cv-00364 (S.D. Miss.). Do I have to respond to it?
The Receiver did not issue the subpoenas. The UPS Store, Inc. issued the subpoenas and began serving them on victims on June 18, 2021.
The Receiver cannot give individual victims legal advice but she will provide information that she believes victims should know here.
06/02/2021
Question 24: I do not have a Priority 1 loss but I have a hardship. How do I apply for an equitable advance?
You should have received a letter from the Receiver. The Receiver mailed a letter to all victims who do not have a Priority 1 loss, and so do not qualify for a first distribution check, on May 25, 2021. The letter enclosed an application.
The equitable advance is intended for persons suffering real hardship. Likely many applicants will be elderly. With such persons in mind, the Receiver created an application form that is easy to fill out, but applicants must sign it under penalty of perjury and agree to provide supporting documentation if requested.
If you should have received the letter and application but did not, contact the Receiver directly.
06/02/2021
Question 23: I have a Priority 1 loss and so qualify for a first distribution check. When will I receive it?
You should have received it by now. Checks were sent on May 25, 2021 via USPS Priority Mail to the recipient’s last confirmed address.
05/12/2021
Question 22: May I listen to the hearing on the proposed first distribution?
Yes. Dial-in information is here.
01/15/2021
Question 21: Tell me more about the proposed settlement with Butler Snow.
For information on the proposed settlement, click here.
01/31/2020
Question 20: What does Bill McHenry’s bankruptcy mean for the $3,473,320 judgment against him?
Click here for information regarding Bill McHenry’s bankruptcy.
01/17/2020
Question 19: I received an email that states “the FBI has closed its investigation.” What does that mean?
Some of you received an email from the FBI’s Victim Notification System which states that “the FBI has closed its investigation in the above referenced case.” The “above referenced case” is identified simply as “Case Number: 318B-JN-2961997.”
The Receiver has confirmed that the case number refers to the case that was tried against Bill McHenry in December 2019. The email refers to the FBI’s investigation relating to that case only.
12/06/2019
Question 18: What does the United States v. McHenry verdict mean?
For the Receiver’s letter regarding the United States v. McHenry verdict, click here.
08/27/2019
Question 17: Tell me more about the proposed settlement with First National Bank of Clarksdale.
For information on the proposed settlement, click here.
02/26/2019
Question 16: Does SB 2901 affect the lawsuit against Butler Snow and Baker Donelson?
The Mississippi legislature currently is considering Senate Bill 2901, titled the “Landowners Protection Act.” The bill aims to limit the liability of landowners for harms arising on their property.
The bill does not, however, address landowners’ liability only. Section 2 of the bill would amend Mississippi Code § 85-5-7, Mississippi’s general law governing joint and several liability, which applies in all lawsuits.
The amendment could limit joint and several liability in lawsuits, such as the lawsuit against Butler Snow and Baker Donelson, which allege intentional, as opposed to merely negligent, acts. Mississippi Code § 85-5-7 currently provides that there shall be no joint and several liability “in any civil action based on fault”—but it expressly states that “[f]ault shall not include any tort which results from an act or omission committed with a specific wrongful intent.” The amendment would delete the word “not.”
This small deletion redefines “fault” and could potentially change joint and several liability in Mississippi. It is not necessary to serve the purpose of the bill, which is to limit landowners’ premises liability only. The bill could be easily tweaked to avoid unintended consequences.
Investors are rightly concerned that Senate Bill 2901 could affect them and should contact their legislator to discuss it. The Receiver nevertheless is confident that the Receivership Estate will establish defendants’ joint and several liability under Mississippi law.
01/15/2019
Question 15: I am an investor. Will I receive a Form 1099-INT for 2018?
Yes. The Receiver has engaged a CPA to prepare and timely issue those forms.
10/24/2018
Question 14: I am a victim and want to speak at sentencing. How do I do that?
Sentencing is still set for October 29, 2018, at 10:00 a.m. in Courtroom 5B. Victims have a right to speak at sentencing. If you are a victim and want to speak, call Lisa Futvoye, Victim Witness Coordinator, at 601-965-4480.
08/20/2018 * follow up *
Question 13: Will Lamar Adams be sentenced on August 21, 2018? If not, when?
Today the court reset Adams’s sentencing for October 29, 2018, at 10:00 a.m. in Courtroom 5B. Follow the federal criminal proceedings here.
08/10/2018
Question 13: Will Lamar Adams be sentenced on August 21, 2018? If not, when?
The parties and the court originally picked August 21, 2018 as Lamar Adams’s sentencing date. At Adams’s request, the government and the court agreed to pick a new date. It is not unusual for a sentencing date to be moved. Victims should not be alarmed. As of today, a new date has not been picked. This website will post the new date when it is known. Follow the federal criminal proceedings here.
08/10/2018
Question 12: “How do I know this receivership is real and not another scheme?”
The question is understandable given victims’ experiences. You may contact the Receiver directly to confirm she is real. See also press releases regarding the Receiver and this website issued by the Securities & Exchange Commission and the Mississippi Secretary of State.
07/27/2018
Question 11: “When might an investor expect to see funds? Do funds come in one lump sum or as money is recovered?”
It’s too early to say. The Receiver was appointed on June 22, 2018, and has spent the past month identifying assets (and assets traceable to assets). The Receiver currently is in the process of determining how best to maximize assets’ values, for the benefit of the Receivership Estate. The Receiver’s forthcoming report, due August 21, 2018, will summarize those findings. The Receiver does not yet know how long it will take to recover enough money to make a meaningful distribution. The Receiver will make interim distributions if circumstances allow.
07/13/2018
Question 10: I am an investor. What does the court’s “stay” mean for me?
U.S. District Judge Carlton W. Reeves entered an order in the federal civil action styled Securities & Exchange Commission vs. Arthur Lamar Adams, et al., No. 3:18-cv-252 (S.D. Miss), that stays, or freezes, any lawsuits against Lamar Adams and Madison Timber Properties, LLC. The stay ensures the Receiver can focus on the business of the Receivership Estate, as opposed to the defense of numerous lawsuits. Its intent is to preserve assets that otherwise would be picked apart by litigants. This means that, although you yourself cannot sue Lamar Adams and Madison Timber Properties, LLC, at this time, thanks to the stay you have a better chance of recovering some money from the Receivership Estate.
07/12/2018
Question 9: I am an investor. What should I be doing now?
You should gather any materials relating to your investment—agreements, memoranda, letters, emails, checks, etc.—right now so you’ll have them if you need them later. The Receiver is also gathering such materials, and if you’d like to share yours with her, please contact the Receiver directly.
07/11/2018
Question 8: Did Adams or Madison Timber Properties pay their affiliates commissions for the sales of investments? Will the Receiver recover those commissions?
Yes, the Receiver is aware that a handful of individuals received substantial commissions or other payments in exchange for their sales or brokerage of investments in Madison Timber Properties. The Receiver has already contacted certain of these individuals to advise that those commissions or other payments were paid with stolen money. The Receiver intends to take any and all action necessary to return such money to the Receivership Estate, for the benefit of investors.
07/10/2018
Question 7: Do Adams or Madison Timber Properties have any assets? What will the Receiver do with the assets?
Yes. In addition to personal assets, Adams owns real estate (or owns interests in real estate) in Jackson, Mississippi; in Sunflower, Oktibbeha, Lafayette, and Holmes Counties, Mississippi; and in Walton County, Florida. The Receiver is assessing how best to maximize the value of known assets for the benefit of the Receivership Estate and, ultimately, investors. If you have any information regarding any assets of Adams or his businesses, please contact the Receiver.
07/09/2018
Question 6: What should I do with my investment for tax purposes?
Each investor should contact his or her own accountant or tax attorney for advice on how to deal with the investment.
07/09/2018
Question 5: Will investors get their money back? If so, when?
It’s too early to say. Lamar Adams was arrested in April, the public learned that he was operating a Ponzi scheme in May, and the Receiver was appointed in June. The Receiver is working steadily with federal and state authorities to identify money and assets belonging to the Receivership Estate, in the hopes of eventually making distributions to investors.
07/07/2018
Question 4: I am an investor. Is the Receiver my lawyer?
The Receiver’s job is to recover money and assets for the benefit of all. To that end, the Receiver does not represent any single party or individual in any case against Adams or his businesses or affiliates.
07/06/2018
Question 3: Who pays the Receiver?
The Receiver is paid from funds held in the Receivership Estate, but only after court approval.
07/01/2018
Question 2: What is a receivership estate?
The term “receivership estate” refers to the property and assets that a receiver controls. In this instance, the Receivership Estate refers to the property and assets of Lamar Adams and Madison Timber Properties, LLC. It includes money and assets frozen by the court’s pre-Receivership orders. The Receiver has taken possession of any existing money and assets and will continue to collect money and assets for the benefit of the Receivership Estate, with the intent to make distributions to investors.
07/01/2018
Question 1: What is a receiver?
Generally, a court appoints a receiver to manage property that is the subject of a dispute. In this instance, the court appointed a Receiver to manage the property and assets of Lamar Adams and Madison Timber Properties, LLC. The court’s order specifically instructs the Receiver to marshal, or collect, assets of Adams and his businesses and any assets traceable to those assets. In other words, the Receiver may sue for and collect any money or things of value that Adams or his businesses fraudulently transferred to third parties. One example is commissions that Adams paid to affiliates who sold investments in Madison Timber Properties, LLC. The Receiver’s job is to recover money and assets for the benefit of all.