Securities Law

Prominent law grad takes plea in $13M securities fraud, civil case against him and lawyer ongoing

A prominent graduate of an Oregon law school who once headed the state’s Republican party and was a candidate for governor has taken a plea in a criminal securities fraud case. Craig Berkman, 71, sobbed in federal court in Manhattan on Tuesday as he apologized and pleaded guilty to one…

Jun 28, 2013 12:25 PM CDT

SEC accuses former general counsel of investment firm of covering up pension theft

The Securities and Exchange Commission has accused the former general counsel of a Detroit investment firm of trying to cover up the theft of pension fund money. Alicia Diaz, the former general counsel of MayfieldGentry Realty Advisors, is accused with three other executives of trying to hide the theft of…

Jun 12, 2013 2:22 PM CDT

Former SEC lawyer uses crowdfunding to bring whistleblower actions

Ted Siedle figures securities fraud is a growth industry. A Securities and Exchange Commission lawyer-turned-financial industry watchdog, Siedle is raising an investment fund to cash in on the agency’s new whistleblower program. After missing big frauds like the Bernie Madoff swindle, the SEC hopes the financial incentive will bring in…

Jun 1, 2013 9:10 AM CDT

Banker Frank Quattrone donates $15 million to Penn Law for legal research center

A well-known investment banker who successfully fought charges in a securities case has donated $15 million to the University of Pennsylvania Law School. Frank Quattrone, through the Frank and Denise Quattrone Foundation, is funding the new Quattrone Center for the Fair Administration of Justice at Penn Law. It will help…

May 29, 2013 7:01 PM CDT

SEC accuses Pennsylvania capital of securities fraud; ex-mayor’s positive statements targeted

Public officials who make positive statements about the fiscal health of their financially troubled cities are now forewarned: The assertions could result in accusations of securities fraud. The Securities and Exchange Commission cited public statements by officials with Harrisburg, Penn., in a suit accusing the city of securities fraud, report…

May 7, 2013 2:33 PM CDT

SEC reportedly subpoenas information from Greenberg Traurig and a lobbyist

The Securities and Exchange Commission has reportedly issued subpoenas to Greenberg Traurig as the agency seeks more information about an investor alert issued by one of the law firm’s clients, a stock brokerage. Several anonymous sources told the Washington Post that the SEC subpoenaed Greenberg Traurig; one of its health-care…

May 2, 2013 12:50 PM CDT

Law firm’s latest bill for Madoff liquidation is $50M, bringing total since his 2008 arrest to $440M

Since December 2008, when Bernard Madoff was arrested in a record-breaking Ponzi scheme operated under the guise of an investment firm, Irving Picard and his law firm have been handling the liquidation for the Securities Investor Protection Corp. A filing in federal court in Manhattan shows the latest bill from…

Apr 30, 2013 3:47 PM CDT

Credit-ratings firm seeks dismissal of US suit, says its statements about independence were puffery

In a motion to dismiss a civil suit by the U.S. Justice Department, Standard & Poor’s is arguing that its statements about independence and objectivity were classic puffery. The agency said such statements were too general and vague to form the basis for a fraud claim, report the Wall Street…

Apr 23, 2013 12:18 PM CDT

If worker social media accounts are private, how can financial firms check for trading issues?

Amidst a growing trend of protecting individuals’ social media accounts from employer scrutiny, securities regulators are trying to put the brakes on burgeoning privacy legislation that has been pondered in 35 states and enacted in at least five. Dozens of new bills have already been introduced this year. The problem…

Apr 22, 2013 9:55 PM CDT

Company sues former law firm, says failure to detect issues before IPO cost millions

A Florida-based company that sells health products over the Internet has sued its former law firm, contending that it lost millions because Shefsky & Froehlich failed to detect and inform its leaders, prior to going forward with an initial public offering, of corporate governance and capital structure issues. In the…

Apr 16, 2013 5:35 PM CDT

2nd Circuit blasts SEC for ‘regrettable inaction’ in massive Madoff fraud, but nixes victim suit

Expressing sympathy for the victims of a record-breaking Ponzi scheme by Bernard Madoff, a federal appeals court on Wednesday blasted the Securities and Exchange Commission for “regrettable inaction” in addressing the fraud but said the SEC is nonetheless protected from suit. The plaintiffs sued the SEC in 2009 under the…

Apr 10, 2013 7:26 PM CDT

SEC greenlights social media sites for company news, won’t pursue Netflix chief over Facebook post

Because the rules for corporate use of social media websites weren’t clear, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission won’t seek to impose regulatory sanctions on the CEO of Netflix Inc. over a Facebook post last July about the company’s booming business. But the SEC released a copy of its investigation…

Apr 2, 2013 10:23 PM CDT

Eleven Bingham partners jump to Sidley, including former FINRA enforcement chief

Eleven partners in Bingham McCutchen’s securities-enforcement group are moving to Sidley & Austin. The New York Times DealBook blog says the departures are “a blow to the Boston-based Bingham, a 1,000-lawyer firm known for its securities-enforcement work.” The practice area is a money maker for law firms offering advice to…

Apr 2, 2013 11:51 AM CDT

Law firms offer cybersecurity advice and attorney-client privilege to hacked companies

Law firms are getting involved as companies investigate hacker incidents, providing attorney-client privilege to shield the findings in future lawsuits. The Wall Street Journal (sub. req.) has a story on the trend. In one example, Nationwide Insurance hired Ropes & Gray after a hacker obtained personal details about 1 million…

Apr 2, 2013 11:00 AM CDT

Expert in legal-fee fight blasts ‘make believe’ game over cost of contract lawyers to do doc review

Even in the New York metropolitan area, the reasonable cost of hiring a contract lawyer from a staffing agency to do document review work in a securities class action case is, at most, $50 to $75 an hour, an expert said in a declaration (PDF) filed last month in federal…

Apr 1, 2013 5:38 PM CDT