Judge Rakoff is currently the Chair of the Mass Torts Subcommittee of the Bankruptcy Committee of the U.S. Judicial Conference; on the bench since 1996, he has written major opinions in the areas of securities law and copyright law. Previously, he has served as Chief of securities fraud prosecutions for the U.S. Attorneys Office, S.D.N.Y., and as lead counsel for defendants in a very large, 5 year long MDL securities fraud litigation; he is also the author of a leading RICO text.