Ex-SEC enforcement chief joins Kirkland, will reportedly be paid over $5M a year

A former top Wall Street watchdog will be focusing on corporate compliance from a different perspective after joining Kirkland & Ellis as a partner. Appointed in 2009 as the SEC’s director of enforcement, Robert Khuzami will now split his time between the New York and Washington, D.C., offices of Kirkland…

Jul 23, 2013 9:55 PM CDT

Federal judge OKs feds’ $5B suit against Standard & Poor’s, blasts ‘troubling’ defense of ‘puffery’

A federal judge in Santa Ana, Calif., has given the green light to a Department of Justice lawsuit claiming that Standard & Poor’s Rating Services fraudulently misrepresented its evaluations of companies as independent and objective. While U.S. District Judge David O. Carter has not ruled on the merits, he denied…

Jul 17, 2013 4:55 PM CDT

At least one juror appears to snooze during CDO testimony in ‘Fabulous Fab’ securities trial

Jurors appeared bored and sleepy during complex testimony on Tuesday in the civil securities fraud trial of former Goldman Sachs Group vice president Fabrice Tourre, who once described himself as “Fabulous Fab” in an email. Tourre is accused of failing to tell investors about a client’s role in creating an…

Jul 17, 2013 2:50 PM CDT

Record 12-year term OK’d for ex-associate who revealed BigLaw deal info in $37M insider-trade scheme

A federal appeals court was not persuaded by a former BigLaw associate’s argument that a record 12-year prison term for insider trading should be reduced. Matthew Kluger “was an attorney who took an oath to uphold the law,” said the 3rd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals in its Tuesday opinion…

Jul 10, 2013 4:34 PM CDT

Noted Katten Muchin lawyer helps Winklevoss twins with ETF plan for bitcoins

A Katten Muchin lawyer who helped create the first exchange-traded fund is behind a new proposal to create a similar investment product for bitcoins. The Winklevoss twins, who own about 1 percent of the virtual currency, are advancing the plan, according to the New York Times DealBook blog and the…

Jul 3, 2013 11:00 AM CDT

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

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