Ruth Madoff in Court Battle to Keep $70M

Ruth Madoff is battling in court to hang onto $70 million in assets she claims have nothing to do with her husband's alleged $50 billion scam. Lawyers for the Madoffs are seeking to protect the assets—including $17 million in cash, $45 million in bonds, and the $7 million Manhattan apartment where Bernard Madoff is under house arrest—from seizure by prosecutors, Bloomberg reports.

Ruth Madoff—who agreed to a voluntary asset freeze in January—is the sole owne of the Upper East Side apartment and the other assets, her lawyers argued. A judge granted a request yesterday to lift the freeze on some of Bernie Madoff's assets, including his brokerage business, to clear the way for a sale to benefit bilked investors. The freeze on Madoff homes in New York and Florida was retained, however. (More Ruth Madoff stories.)