Referee to Filter Bank Data in Snyder Probe : Campaigns: Judge’s ruling is a partial victory for the former councilman, who is the subject of a money-laundering inquiry related to political donations. A motion to quash or limit subpoenas was denied.

In a partial victory for former Los Angeles Councilman Arthur K. Snyder, a Superior Court judge ruled Monday that a court-appointed referee must screen key bank records sought by investigators as part of a campaign money-laundering probe involving Snyder, his law firm and several associates.

Judge Patti S. Kitching agreed to allow an independent referee to filter an array of subpoenaed bank records to balance the privacy rights of Snyder, his clients and others against the needs of investigators to analyze financial records.

“I think it will give both sides protection,” the judge said.

At the same time, Kitching denied a motion on Snyder’s behalf to quash or limit the subpoenas and stressed she was not attempting to block investigators from obtaining relevant records. “Nothing is going to escape that is legitimately” available to investigators, Kitching assured attorney Mark Morodomi of the state Fair Political Practices Commission.

The legal battle over the subpoenas stems from a joint FPPC and Los Angeles Ethics Commission probe of allegations that Snyder, now a prominent lawyer-lobbyist, and several associates are part of a network that may have funneled tens of thousands of dollars in illegal political donations to state and local candidates.

Specifically, court records indicate that a complex web of individuals and corporations “emanating from . . . Snyder Law Corporation” is suspected of recruiting campaign donors and then secretly reimbursing them--a potential violation of state and local election laws.

No charges have been filed, and Snyder has denied the allegations. The ex-councilman and several associates filed suit challenging the subpoenas, contending that they are too broad and a violation of the attorney-client privacy privilege of Snyder’s law firm.

At issue are bank records related to transactions involving 25 individuals, three corporations, and the campaigns of 19 elected officials and former candidates.

Under Kitching’s ruling, many of those records will be screened by a court referee, who will decide if they are relevant to the investigation or legally protected by attorney-client privileges.

Snyder’s attorney, James Sutton, said Kitching’s ruling was “kind of verifying that they were making unreasonable requests that go beyond the bounds of the law.” He also said that the city Ethics Commission, in particular, had engaged in “zealotry” and “very hard-line tactics” in the investigation.

Morodomi, the FPPC attorney, disputed Sutton’s conclusions, saying that although the judge added a step to obtaining financial records, “the court basically did not deny us getting any information.” At the most, the judge’s order will merely slow the investigative process, Morodomi said.

Mimi Strauss, chief of enforcement for the city Ethics Commission, said her 2-year-old agency is “doing what we believe the voters mandated us to do.”

“We have conducted our investigations very, very seriously,” while still being sensitive to individuals’ due process rights, she said.

The probe involving Snyder and his associates is one of two Los Angeles money-laundering investigations being conducted by the FPPC and the city Ethics Commission, court records show. The other centers on former employees of the firm that holds the city contract to stage the multimillion-dollar Los Angeles Marathon. William Burke, the president of the firm, has denied any knowledge of wrongdoing.

No evidence has surfaced that politicians knew they were receiving suspect donations, investigators say. But, typically, candidates know that lobbyists, contractors or other fund-raisers are helping recruit contributors--a practice that critics says boosts the fund-raisers’ access and influence.

In another development, the city Ethics Commission said Monday it will offer training to mayoral and other candidates regarding the problem.

Under new provisions of city ethics laws, candidates and their treasurers will be required to attend a special Jan. 9 session, Strauss said.

Among the topics will be how to determine suspicious clusters of donations, such as unfamiliar individuals giving outside the city and those with relatively low-paying occupations who are making large donations.

“The most effective way to (prevent money laundering) is to educate recipients of the contributions (about) how to spot and reject them,” Strauss said.