Judge Jed S. Rakoff on Wednesday sided with trustee Irving Picard, ruling he was entitled to present his case to a jury in March if the lawsuit trying to recover funds for victims of Bernard Madoff's Ponzi scheme is not settled beforehand.

Michael J. Kline, a Princeton-based lawyer with Fox Rothschild LLP, agrees that potentially presents more risk to Fred Wilpon and family in the $386 million lawsuit.

"I agree that the Wilpons should have preferred Judge Rakoff alone to find fact as well as the law," Kline said. "He has already shown an orientation favorable to the defendants by his earlier rulings and has slapped the Trustee's hands.

"Moreover, however, not only is a jury totally unpredictable, this case is highly complex and has created significant controversy among legal experts. Understanding of material aspects by a lay jury may be difficult or even impossible. In such a case a jury may feel more comfortable in grasping hold of simpler or limited concepts to which it can relate and can comprehend. This can lead to unexpected results."