Hill Williams Development Corp

Two groups filed lawsuits Wednesday in Orange County Superior Court against Hill Williams Development Corp., an Anaheim Hills company that since 1989 has raised more than $80 million from 6,000 investors to build houses and condominiums. One of the filings is a class-action suit demanding an accounting of how the money was used. Hill Williams announced last month a temporary suspension of monthly dividends to its investors, most of whom are Orange and San Diego County residents.

An administrative law judge has banned David Colton, an Orange County developer who was a principal figure in one of Orange County's costliest real estate scams, from being involved in any securities business in the state. The state Department of Corporations sought the ban after Colton allegedly failed to comply with a court order in 1995 to repay $23 million to investors in the Hill Williams Development Corp., which he helped promote. The operation collapsed in 1993.

A class-action lawsuit is expected to be filed today in Orange County Superior Court on behalf of 6,000 Southern Californians who invested about $80 million in an Anaheim Hills company that said it used the money for building houses and condominiums. "We are asking for an accounting of the funds--we want to know where the heck the money went," said Tim Cohelan, a San Diego lawyer representing the plaintiffs in the suit. The lawsuit, Cohelan said, was prompted by Hill Williams Development Corp.'

An administrative law judge has banned David Colton, an Orange County developer who was a key figure in one of Orange County's costliest real estate scams, from being involved in any securities business in the state. The state Department of Corporations sought the ban after Colton allegedly failed to comply with a court order in 1995 to repay more than $23 million to investors in the Hill Williams Development Corp., for which he served as an underwriter in several deals.

At least once a week, Stacy Jones can expect to find in her mailbox a letter concerning the saga of Hill Williams Development Corp. The missives began in January with the company's abrupt announcement that it had halted monthly dividend checks to its investors. A series of vague updates followed, ending with notification that Hill Williams had filed for liquidation. Then came an onslaught of correspondence from attorneys offering to represent the jilted investors in lawsuits.

Hill Williams Broker to Pay $23.3 Million: Investment broker David A. Colton willfully defrauded investors in the failed Hill Williams Development Corp., helping founder Donald Hill Williams to bilk investors out of $90 million, an Orange County judge ruled in a decision released Thursday. Superior Court Judge William F. McDonald ordered Colton, an Irvine businessman who has filed for personal bankruptcy, to pay $23.3 million in damages to 1,065 investors. McDonald also awarded plaintiffs $15.

Investors Win Case Against Hill Williams: A U.S. Bankruptcy Court judge ordered former real estate developer Donald Hill Williams to pay $20 million to the investors, who lost about $90 million in the now defunct Hill Williams Development Corp. of Anaheim. Judge John E. Ryan's decision settled a lawsuit filed by about 900 mostly elderly plaintiffs who said Williams defrauded them in land investment schemes.

Hill Williams Development Under Investigation: Orange County's supervising deputy district attorney for major fraud, Pete Huelfenbeck, said his Santa Ana office is assisting the U.S. Postal Inspection Service in an investigation of Hill Williams Development Corp. For more than three years, the Anaheim Hills company collected nearly $90 million from about 5,000 investors, claiming that the money would be used to build and sell houses.

An administrative law judge has banned David Colton, an Orange County developer who was a principal figure in one of Orange County's costliest real estate scams, from being involved in any securities business in the state. The state Department of Corporations sought the ban after Colton allegedly failed to comply with a court order in 1995 to repay $23 million to investors in the Hill Williams Development Corp., which he helped promote. The operation collapsed in 1993.

Donald Hill Williams Jr. acknowledged Wednesday in U.S. Bankruptcy Court here that several members of his family were on the payroll at his now-failed development company, that his mother lived in a company-owned house in Utah and that he continued to view Southern California's real estate market with optimism even as it teetered on the edge of collapse. But the founder and former president of now-bankrupt Hill Williams Development Corp.

About 1,000 investors who lost their life savings in the collapse of Hill Williams Development Corp.--which became one of Orange County's costliest real estate scams--have filed a lawsuit accusing one of the firm's former promoters of hiding assets in order to avoid a $23-million judgment. The suit, filed in Orange County Superior Court, contends that David A.

Donald Hill Williams Jr., the real estate developer who operated one of the state's largest Ponzi schemes targeting elderly investors, agreed Friday to plead guilty to 11 counts of investment fraud. He faces about three years in federal prison. Williams also promised to repay $30.5 million to 2,500 investors of his now-defunct Anaheim Hills firm, according to a plea agreement with federal prosecutors. The agreement, filed in U.S.

Donald Hill Williams Jr., the Orange County real estate developer who operated one of the state's largest Ponzi schemes targeting elderly investors, agreed Friday to plead guilty to 11 counts of investment fraud. He faces about three years in federal prison. Williams also promised to repay $30.5 million to 2,500 investors of his now-defunct Anaheim Hills firm, according to a plea agreement with federal prosecutors. The agreement, filed in U.S.

An Orange County brokerage that raised millions of dollars for failed Hill Williams Development Corp. has agreed to settle a lawsuit brought by 1,000 of the fraud-ridden Anaheim company's investors. Terms of the settlement are being kept secret, but sources said that Titan Value Equities Corp. will pay about $1 million to the investors, whose losses in the Hill Williams debacle total $33 million.

Hill Williams Broker to Pay $23.3 Million: Investment broker David A. Colton willfully defrauded investors in the failed Hill Williams Development Corp., helping founder Donald Hill Williams to bilk investors out of $90 million, an Orange County judge ruled in a decision released Thursday. Superior Court Judge William F. McDonald ordered Colton, an Irvine businessman who has filed for personal bankruptcy, to pay $23.3 million in damages to 1,065 investors. McDonald also awarded plaintiffs $15.

Investment broker David A. Colton willfully defrauded investors in the failed Hill Williams Development Corp., helping founder Donald Hill Williams bilk investors out of $90 million, an Orange County judge has ruled. In a scathing opinion, Superior Court Judge William F. McDonald ordered Colton to pay $23.3 million in damages to investors for failing to act prudently while serving as underwriter for several Hill Williams Development deals.

A real estate development group asked a U.S. Bankruptcy Court judge Monday for additional time to complete a preliminary study that could lead to a "substantial" investment in the now-bankrupt Hill Williams Development Corp. During a conference Monday in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Santa Ana, the group that includes thrift industry veteran William J. Popejoy sought permission to complete an in-depth study of Hill Williams' properties and its financial records.

Investors Win Case Against Hill Williams: A U.S. Bankruptcy Court judge ordered former real estate developer Donald Hill Williams to pay $20 million to the investors, who lost about $90 million in the now defunct Hill Williams Development Corp. of Anaheim. Judge John E. Ryan's decision settled a lawsuit filed by about 900 mostly elderly plaintiffs who said Williams defrauded them in land investment schemes.

A U.S. Bankruptcy Court judge Tuesday ordered former Anaheim real estate developer Donald Hill Williams to pay $20 million to investors in a fraud-riddled scheme that preyed on the elderly. Judge John E. Ryan castigated Williams for bilking investors in his Hill Williams Development Corp. of $90 million through land investment schemes. "He preyed on those least able to recover from financial disaster," Ryan said.