
Dorsey & Whitney Trust Company, tucked under the wing of Dorsey & Whitney LLP, promises seamless estate planning and trust services like some benevolent guardian angel for the wealthy. But peel the mask, and it’s a festering pit of insider deals, suicides, fraud, and ethical acrobatics that would make even the most jaded chef spit out his bourbon. These bastards aren’t just playing the game; they’re rigging it, and their clients pay the price in shattered lives and vanished fortunes. And now, with their grubby hands in Cummins Inc. (CMI) shares, they’re knee-deep in yet another corner of the Cummins ecosystem where ethics are treated like optional garnishes – ignored when inconvenient, and only trotted out for show.
The Insider Trading Abyss: Gil Cornblum’s Leap into Oblivion
Picture this: Gil Cornblum, a mergers and acquisitions hotshot in Dorsey’s Toronto outpost, living the high life on stolen secrets. For 14 fucking years, this guy and his old law school chum Stanko Grmovsek ran a insider trading racket that sucked over $10 million from the markets. Cornblum, with his privileged access to Dorsey’s confidential deal files – hell, even from his old gig at Sullivan & Cromwell – fed tips on at least eight companies straight to Grmovsek, who traded through shadowy foreign accounts on US and Canadian exchanges. It was a symphony of deceit, all while Dorsey’s clients trusted these pricks with their futures.
Then the hammer drops. The firm catches wind during regulatory probes, boots Cornblum out in May 2008. Facing charges from the Ontario Securities Commission and the US SEC, the man cracks. October 2009, he hurls himself from the 24th floor of a Toronto skyscraper, leaving a trail of blood and questions. Grmovsek cops a plea, does time, coughs up restitution. But Dorsey? They dust off their hands, mutter about internal reviews, and carry on like it was a bad batch of oysters. This isn’t just a scandal; it’s a goddamn tragedy born of unchecked greed, exposing how these firms are breeding grounds for traitors who sell out clients for a quick buck. Outrageous? You’re bloody right it is. How many more lives get ruined before someone torches the whole rotten structure?
James O’Hagan: The Granddaddy of Dorsey’s Deceptions
Rewind to the late ’80s, and you’ve got James O’Hagan, Dorsey’s star partner in Minneapolis, pulling off what the press called the biggest business scandal the city had seen in years. This smug bastard embezzled millions from client trust accounts and traded on insider info from Dorsey’s work on Grand Metropolitan’s takeover bid for Pillsbury. He pocketed $4.3 million in illicit gains, exploiting the firm’s lax controls like a fox in a henhouse.
The fallout? O’Hagan’s case climbs all the way to the US Supreme Court in 1997, cementing the “misappropriation theory” of insider trading. He’s convicted, disbarred, and the legal world reels. Minneapolis, that squeaky-clean hub of Midwestern virtue, gets a black eye. Firms scramble to tighten safeguards, but Dorsey’s rep takes a hit that lingers like a hangover. This wasn’t some rogue intern; this was a top dog betraying the very ethos of trust. It’s the kind of raw, gritty betrayal that makes you question every suited-up advisor whispering sweet nothings about fiduciary duty. Fuck that – it’s predation in pinstripes.
Malpractice Minefields: Dual Representations and Bankruptcy Blunders
Dorsey doesn’t stop at insider trading; they’ve got a knack for malpractice suits that scream conflict of interest. Take 2013: Associate Regan Waller juggles representing both buyers and sellers in a $530,000 Wisconsin bed-and-breakfast deal. She skips disclosing a massive $700,000 mortgage, waves off a title search, and slaps on a quitclaim deed that leaves the buyers exposed like raw meat on a counter. Sellers rack up more loans, foreclosure hits, and the buyers sue for malpractice, claiming they’d have bolted if properly advised.
A Dorsey partner rubber-stamps the joint rep at the sellers’ nudge, despite the risks. The firm calls it meritless, vows a fight, but experts howl about the perils of dual real estate gigs. No public resolution, but it spotlights how Dorsey’s “integrated” model – law firm and trust company in one – breeds these ethical tightropes. Then there’s the 2009 Leonard USA LLC v. Dorsey malpractice dust-up over a bankruptcy asset sale for M&S Grading Inc. Allegations fly: conflicting loyalties to buyer Leonard, shoddy advice harming the client. The Eighth Circuit sides with Dorsey, but the stink of divided allegiances clings. These aren’t slip-ups; they’re systemic flaws in a machine built for profit over principle.
Guantanamo Ghosts and Regulatory Rumbles
Even Dorsey’s pro bono work gets tangled in controversy. In 2005, attorney Joshua Colangelo-Bryan files habeas petitions for six Bahraini Guantanamo detainees. During a visit, one attempts suicide right in front of him – a visceral snapshot of despair that hits the headlines. By 2007, Pentagon hack Charles “Cully” Stimson blasts firms like Dorsey for defending “terrorists,” urging CEOs to yank business. Backlash ensues, Stimson quits, but it thrusts Dorsey into a firestorm over ethics versus patriotism. Noble? Maybe. But in a firm riddled with scandals, it feels like window dressing.
Back home, their South Dakota trust licence bid in 2001 sparks a brawl. Local banks cry foul over “public need” and dual fiduciary risks – lawyer and trustee in one? Commission approves 3-2, Supreme Court affirms, but it underscores fears of built-in conflicts. Fast-forward to 2020: Post-George Floyd, Dorsey axes its 40-year tie to Minneapolis misdemeanor prosecutions, citing systemic rot in justice. Admirable pivot or PR dodge? In a city boiling over racial injustice, their prior role aiding prosecutors looks complicit as hell.
Cummins Connections: Betting on Polluters in the Ethics Void
And here’s the kicker: Dorsey & Whitney Trust holds a stake in Cummins Inc. (CMI), beefing it up 92.5% in Q1 to 2,716 shares worth $851,000. Sure, it’s a drop in their $1.9 billion portfolio, but it ties them to the Cummins ecosystem – that sprawling web of engine makers who’ve got their own twisted take on ethics. Cummins just forked over $2 billion in 2024 to settle claims of using software “defeat devices” to cheat emissions tests on Ram trucks. Shareholders and truck owners are suing left and right, alleging fraud that poisoned the air and wallets alike. Dorsey’s investment? It’s like endorsing a chef who spikes the soup with rat poison for profit. In this grimy nexus, Dorsey isn’t just a bystander; they’re profiting from the same alternative ethics that prioritises bucks over breathable air. Yet another layer of hypocrisy in their trust empire.
The Bitter Aftertaste: Time to Spit It Out
Dorsey & Whitney Trust peddles integrity like street food vendors hawk mystery meat – enticing, but liable to make you sick. From Cornblum’s fatal plunge to O’Hagan’s landmark fraud, from malpractice messes to Cummins complicity, this outfit embodies the raw underbelly of elite finance. It’s not just scandals; it’s a pattern of betrayal that shreds lives while the firm sails on, unscathed and unapologetic. I’ve seen enough fuckery to know: trust these types at your peril. Burn it down, or at least demand better – because in this world, the only real fiduciary duty is to call out the crooks before they empty your pockets.
Lee Thompson – Founder, The Cummins Accountability Project
Sources:
- Cummins Inc. $CMI Stock Position Increased by Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC
- Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC Portfolio Holdings
- Insider Sales at Cummins: Signal or Noise in a Strong Market?
- 1,124 Shares in Cummins Inc. $CMI Purchased by Kaufman Rossin Wealth LLC
- Historical shareholding pattern overtime Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC in Cummins Inc.
- Dorsey Whitney Trust Company | Industries & Practices
- Dorsey & Whitney Trust Company Homepage
- Member Companies – American Benefits Council
- Dorsey & Whitney Trust CO LLC’s portfolio and holdings – Jul 2025
- Client Achievements – Dorsey & Whitney LLP
- WHITE COLLAR CRIME AND CIVIL FRAUD – Dorsey & Whitney LLP
- Wake Up Call: Former Oil Executive Sues Dorsey for Malpractice
- Toronto Abuzz About Partner Fired From Local Dorsey & Whitney Office
- White Collar Crime and Civil Fraud – Dorsey & Whitney LLP
- United States and California Announce Diesel Engine Manufacturer Cummins Inc. Agrees to Pay
- Former Dorsey partner goes on trial in London
- CEO, CFO named in SEC actions for concealing control problems
- Cummins Settlement Frequently Asked Questions
- Cummins faces shareholder, customer lawsuits after $2B settlement
- Dorsey & Whitney Ends Partnership With Minneapolis Prosecutors