Securities Law

Supreme Court upholds insider trading conviction for secondhand tippee

The U.S. Supreme Court on Tuesday ruled that a secondhand tippee who traded on confidential inside corporate information first passed between brothers can be convicted of insider trading even though the original tipper received no money or property for the tips. The Supreme Court upheld the conviction of Bassam Salman…

Dec 6, 2016 10:21 AM CST

Future is cloudy for Dodd-Frank and financial regulatory agencies under Trump presidency

Throughout the course of his presidential campaign, there was a veritable laundry list of proverbial bogeymen that Donald Trump promised to vanquish if and when he got into the Oval Office. One of the biggest was the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act. The wide-ranging law, which was…

Nov 30, 2016 1:25 PM CST

These law firms get the most business from large companies in five areas of litigation

The nation’s largest companies spread their work around to a mix of law firms, according to an analysis of court filings and public documents. Corporate Counsel (sub. req.) did the review and created the list of the top go-to law firms used by Fortune 50 companies in five key areas…

Nov 21, 2016 1:39 PM CST

Mary Jo White to step down as SEC chair, opening door to dismantling of Dodd-Frank

Mary Jo White is leaving her job as chair of the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Nov 14, 2016 5:28 PM CST

9th Circuit tosses arbitration decision because panel chair lied about being a lawyer

A federal appeals court has overturned an arbitration decision because the person who headed the arbitration panel had falsely claimed to be a California lawyer. The San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals ruled (PDF) on Nov. 4 that Move Inc. was denied a fundamentally fair hearing because of…

Nov 8, 2016 7:00 AM CST

SCOTUS considers reach of insider trading law; what if tipster derives no financial benefit?

The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday considered whether insider trading includes tips on material, nonpublic information passed between relatives and friends, without any financial benefit to the insider providing the tip. Prosecutors argued that an insider who provides confidential information as a gift has received a personal benefit that can…

Oct 6, 2016 12:56 PM CDT

Municipal-bond fraud verdict against Miami could cause increase in SEC enforcement actions

After a federal jury Wednesday found that the city of Miami committed fraud when it sold more than $150 million in municipal debt, it’s likely that the Securities and Exchange Commission will bring similar actions against other cities, Reuters reports. The SEC accused the Florida city and Michael Boudreaux, its…

Sep 16, 2016 2:45 PM CDT

Posner opinion blasts class actions that are ‘no better than a racket’

A shareholder lawsuit settled 18 days after filing benefited the lawyers who would receive $370,000, but the disclosures required by the deal in advance of a merger were of little value, a federal appeals court has found. The Aug. 10 opinion (PDF) by the Chicago-based 7th U.S. Circuit Court of…

Aug 12, 2016 8:15 AM CDT

Former BigLaw partner is indicted for alleged insider trading

Updated: A former partner at Hunton & Williams has been indicted along with an investment adviser for alleged insider trading. The lawyer, 58-year-old Robert Schulman, was a patent lawyer at Hunton & Williams at the time of the alleged wrongdoing in 2010, Reuters reports. He was indicted along with Tibor…

Aug 10, 2016 12:31 PM CDT

Ex-BigLaw partner avoids long sentence for insider trading; judge notes otherwise ‘exemplary life’

A former partner at Fox Rothschild has received a six-month sentence for insider trading and making false statements to the FBI. U.S. District Judge Cynthia Rufe of Philadelphia sentenced Herbert Sudfeld after character witnesses “testified to Sudfeld’s charitable nature and love of his church and community,” the Legal Intelligencer (sub.…

Jul 22, 2016 3:02 PM CDT

Law firms are ‘implicated’ in rise of inequality, says ‘Saving Capitalism’ author Robert Reich

The author of Saving Capitalism: For the Many, Not the Few doesn’t want to go so far as to say that large law firms are complicit in the rise of inequality. “Complicit is a strong word,” author Robert Reich tells the American Lawyer (sub. req.). “They’re definitely implicated. The structure…

Jul 22, 2016 8:00 AM CDT

Why Gibson Dunn represented a New York financier for only 16 days

A federal appeals court appears to be making a point about bringing lawyers into a case with the possible goal of forcing the recusal of a judge. In July 14 order (PDF), the New York-based 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals struck the appearances of five Gibson Dunn partners, including…

Jul 18, 2016 8:30 AM CDT

9th Circuit reinstates investors’ claim against Venable over client’s alleged Facebook scam

A federal appeals court has reinstated a claim against the Venable law firm in a suit by investors who say the law firm’s client scammed them into paying $11.25 million for Facebook shares that didn’t exist. The San Francisco-based 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals reinstated claims by ESG Capital…

Jul 12, 2016 3:07 PM CDT

Rite Aid can’t recover from imprisoned ex-lawyer because of release in shareholder suit, judge rules

A federal judge in Philadelphia has blocked Rite Aid’s $135 million suit in state court against its convicted former chief counsel and vice chairman because of a release signed by the company in a shareholder class action in 2001. U.S. District Judge Stewart Dalzell ruled June 7 that Rite Aid…

Jun 14, 2016 8:31 AM CDT

Judge’s finding that Dell buyout was too cheap is ‘sending shudders all over Wall Street’

A Delaware chancery judge’s decision last week that a buyout group paid too little for Dell Inc. is drawing praise from shareholder advocates and creating alarm in corporate boardrooms. The judge, Travis Laster, ruled that the buyout group led by company founder Michael Dell underpaid shareholders by $6 billion, even…

Jun 7, 2016 11:59 AM CDT