NEW YORK (LN) — U.S. District Judge Katherine Polk Failla entered a default judgment Monday against Marc Lawrence in a securities fraud case, sanctioning the former Downing executive for failing to respond to a show cause order after he failed to appear at a pre-motion conference.
The order targets Counts 10, 11, and 13 of the Second Amended Complaint, which allege fraudulent inducement, fraud, and securities fraud against Lawrence and other defendants in the case styled Kiderman et al v. Downing Investment Partners, LP et al.
Failla issued the show cause order on March 6, 2026, requiring the parties to appear for a pre-motion conference on April 13. Lawrence failed to appear at that conference, prompting the judge to order him to explain in writing by May 1 why the court should not enter default judgment against him.
The judge noted Lawrence’s plea allocution in a related criminal case, United States v. Lawrence, No. 19 Cr. 437-2 (AKH), as a factor to demand an explanation for his noncompliance.
Lawrence did not respond to the show cause order. The court directed the Clerk of Court to mail a copy of the order to Lawrence’s address of record and to co-defendant David Wagner.
Because Lawrence remained silent, Failla entered the default judgment on May 11. The court will refer the parties to Magistrate Judge Moses for a damages inquest under separate cover.
The plaintiffs in the securities fraud suit include David Kiderman, David Hilderbrand, Ryan Detzel, and Mark Miller. The defendants include Downing Investment Partners, LP; Downing Partners, LLC; Downing Health Technologies, LLC; Downing Medical Device Group, LLC; Surgical Safety Solutions, LLC; Surgical Safety Solutions Interactive, LLC; 3SI Systems, LLC; IVC Healthcom, LLC; David W. Wagner; and Marc M. Lawrence.