Securities Law

Unsealed Madoff Trustee Suit Details $6.4B Claim Against JPMorgan Chase

Unsealed today in federal bankruptcy court, a $6.4 billion lawsuit filed late last year against JPMorgan Chase & Co. details the theories under which a trustee liquidating the business of convicted Ponzi schemer Bernard Madoff is seeking to force the bank to ante up for some Madoff investor losses. Copies…

Feb 4, 2011 1:18 AM CST

2-Lawyer Winston Team Leaps to Kaye Scholer; Vincent Sama to Chair Securities Litigation Group There

As the legal market for lateral hires continues to revive, the revolving door moves in both directions at Winston & Strawn. At the same time that the Chicago-based firm reportedly is seeking to bring in some 150 or more partners from Howrey, it is losing two to Kaye Scholer. Vincent…

Feb 3, 2011 9:55 PM CST

Greenberg Traurig Ousts Partner Accused of Altering Offering Documents in SEC Probe

Greenberg Traurig has ousted a Los Angeles partner accused of altering offering documents requested in an investigation by the Securities and Exchange Commission. The law firm terminated partner David Tamman on Friday, according to the Am Law Daily and a Reuters Legal article published by Westlaw News & Insights. A…

Jan 31, 2011 2:44 PM CST

US Panel Blames Corporate Greed, Fed and SEC, Among Others, For 2008 Financial Meltdown

Corporate greed, excessive risk-taking on Wall Street and a failure by key government regulators to do their jobs were among major factors that led to the financial meltdown of 2008, a congressional panel has found. In a report expected to be released Thursday as a 576-page book, the Financial Crisis…

Jan 25, 2011 11:29 PM CST

2nd Former Ropes & Gray Associate Pleads Guilty in Insider-Trading Case

A second onetime Ropes & Gray associate has pleaded guilty to making unauthorized use of confidential law firm client information in a wide-ranging insider-trading case in which certain individuals connected with the Galleon hedge fund have also been accused. Patent attorney Arthur Cutillo, 34, admitted that he was paid $32,500…

Jan 15, 2011 12:24 AM CST

Money Manager Accused of Death Threats Against Securities Lawyers, Top Regulators

A New York money manager has been charged with threatening to kill 47 current and former securities regulators, including lawyers who worked on a lawsuit accusing him of running unregistered commodity pools. Among the officials allegedly targeted were Mary Schapiro of the Securities and Exchange Commission and Gary Gensler of…

Jan 14, 2011 7:44 PM CST

In ‘Social Network’ Sequel, Appellate Panel Grills Lawyer for Twins Seeking More Facebook Millions

A federal appeals court panel in San Francisco today grilled both sides in a battle between Facebook co-founder Mark Zuckerberg and upscale identical twins who claim he stole the idea for the now-renowned social networking site from them. The dispute was settled in 2008 for $65 million, as noted in…

Jan 11, 2011 11:11 PM CST

Is Satan Relevant in an Investor Class Action? Justices Debate Issue in Smell Loss Case

Are rumors of Satanism the type of material information that must be disclosed to corporate investors? The issue was part of a Supreme Court debate on Monday about required disclosures by a company that made nasal spray, the New York Times reports. Arizona company Matrixx Initiatives is facing an investor…

Jan 11, 2011 5:16 PM CST

Ernst & Young Accused in NY Suit of Helping Lehman Hide Billions in Debt

The accounting firm Ernst &Young is being targeted in a lawsuit for its work for Lehman Brothers before the investment bank’s collapse in 2008. The suit by outgoing New York Attorney General Andrew Cuomo claims the accounting firm helped Lehman hide billions of dollars in debt, according to the Associated…

Dec 22, 2010 5:14 PM CST

Double Whammy for Ex-BigLaw Partner Both Arrested & Sued by SEC Today re Alleged Role in $20M Fraud

A former partner of Winston & Strawn was both arrested today and sued today by the Securities and Exchange Commission over allegations that he had a role in a former New York money manager’s theft of more than $20 million from investors’ accounts. Jonathan Star Bristol, 55, was federally indicted…

Dec 16, 2010 7:48 PM CST

Judge Refuses to Release Names of SEC Lawyers Who Viewed Porn at Work

The identity of the Securities and Exchange Commission lawyer who spent up to eight hours of day watching pornography at work will remain a secret under a federal judge’s ruling. U.S. District Judge Christine Arguello turned down a Denver lawyer’s request for the names of porn-watching SEC employees, citing privacy…

Dec 10, 2010 2:12 PM CST

Major Del. Law Firm at Which IT Manager Allegedly Traded on Client Merger Info Is ID’d

One of Delaware’s biggest and best-known corporate law firms was reportedly the victim of an alleged insider-trading scheme by a former information technology and security manager. Although not identified in a Securities and Exchange Commission complaint filed against Jeffrey Temple, 40, the law firm from which he stole client merger…

Dec 8, 2010 10:30 PM CST

SEC Says Law Firm Tech Manager Used Merger Info from 20 Clients for Insider Trading Scheme

A former information technology manager in charge of keeping electronic materials secure for an unidentified Wilmington, Del., law firm allegedly used confidential information from at least 20 clients in insider trades made by himself and his brother-in-law. Jeffery J. Temple used the information to trade in stock of major corporations…

Dec 7, 2010 11:22 PM CST

Madoff Trustee Sues JPMorgan Chase, Seeks $6B for Alleged Blind Eye to Massive Swindle

In a complaint filed under seal in U.S. Bankruptcy Court in Manhattan, a court-appointed trustee winding up the business affairs of convicted swindler Bernard Madoff has accused a major bank of aiding and abetting his record-breaking Ponzi scheme over a period of decades. JPMorgan Chase & Co., which was Madoff’s…

Dec 2, 2010 8:31 PM CST

US Senate Votes to Exempt Lawyers from ‘Red Flags Rule’

The American Bar Association came one step closer today to halting an attempt by the Federal Trade Commission to regulate the practice of law when the U.S. Senate unanimously voted that the commission’s “red flags rule” doesn’t apply to lawyers. The legislation at issue, which seeks to curb identity theft…

Dec 1, 2010 1:39 AM CST