Colleen McMahon, the Federal Judge ruling in the case, said that the trustee did not have the standing to bring a common-law case against the financial institutions.
Earlier in the year Irving Picard filed the claims against JPMorgan, a bank used by Madoff as part of his scheme, stating that the financial institution had been âan active enablerâ in the fraud.
UBS was also accused of ignoring warning signals and being involved in running two feeder funds on behalf of Madoff and his firm.
In an emailed statement from Picard, which was quoted by Bloomberg, the trustee said: âThe trustee and his counsel remain confident in the cases brought against JPMorgan Chase and UBS and related entities as well as in the trusteeâs standing to pursue all the claims in connection with those cases.â
Irving Picard is planning on launching an appeal against the judgeâs verdict, while both banks said they were pleased with the decision.
Madoff pleaded guilty to running the Ponzi scheme, which is believed to be the largest of its kind in corporate history - he is currently serving a 150 year prison sentence.
By Jim Ottewill