All articles by Bruce Carton – Page 7
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Blog
SEC, DOJ Pursue Scottish Trader for 'False Tweets'
Market manipulation is nothing new, of course, but both the SEC and DOJ pursued a social media-age method of illegally moving the market last week when they brought securities fraud charges against a Scottish trader whose allegedly used "false tweets" to caused the stock prices of two companies to plunge.
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Seven SEC Enforcement Directors Convene For Historic Panel
At yesterday's Securities Enforcement Forum 2015, a Directors Panel was held that included seven current or former SEC Directors of Enforcement--including Hon. Irving Pollack, the very first Enforcement Director, and Andrew Ceresney, the current Director.
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SEC’s Financial Reporting Cases, Overall Activity Surge in FY 2015
SEC Fiscal Year 2015 enforcement results revealed that for the year ended Sept. 30, 2015, the Commission filed a record-high 807 enforcement actions and obtained orders totaling approximately $4.2 billion in disgorgement and penalties. Of these 807 enforcement actions, 507 were “independent actions,” with the other 300 actions being either ...
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New Database Tracks SEC Enforcement Actions Against Public Cos.
A new, publicly-available database known as "SEED" tracks SEC enforcement actions against public companies. The database, from NYU and Cornerstone Research, will also provide the basis for ongoing academic analysis of trends in SEC enforcement.
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Rep. Garrett Proposes Game-Changing Legislation for SEC APs
Image: Rep. Scott Garrett (R-N.J.) has proposed the “Due Process Restoration Act,” which would provide parties to administrative proceedings the option to have their case heard in federal court, and also impose a higher burden of proof on the SEC in its “APs.” The bill is a response to the ...
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Pres. Obama Nominates Fairfax, Peirce as SEC Commissioners
This week, President Obama announced his intent to nominate Lisa Fairfax, currently a law professor at the George Washington University Law School, and Hester Peirce, a senior research fellow at the Financial Markets Working Group at George Mason University’s Mercatus Center, as SEC commissioners. If confirmed, Fairfax and Peirce will ...
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'You Know What's Cool? A Billion Dollars,' Part III
Yes, the Madoff trustee's legal and professional fees have passed the $1 billion mark, but with the release today of more good news for Madoff victims, the trustee says that this $1 billion (and counting!) is a “very good return on an investment.”
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Comm. Aguilar: 'Conscientious' Directors Should Not Fear SEC
Image: In a recent speech, SEC Commissioner Luis Aguilar stated that although the SEC does occasionally file cases against directors of public companies, “the vast majority of directors are embracing their responsibilities and are fulfilling them conscientiously. These directors should have nothing to fear from the SEC.” Aguilar said that ...
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Cosi Blames Decline in Q3 Sales on Pope
Last week, in an effort to explain third quarter sales that were down slightly from sales reported in the third quarter of 2014, the restaurant Cosi pointed the finger at an unlikely figure: the Pope!
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Hillary Clinton Pledges to Redefine Insider Trading, Self-Fund SEC
The Supreme Court announced this week that it will let stand the Second Circuit's landmark insider trading decision in U.S. v. Newman. Hillary Clinton, however, says that as President she would not do the same, and that she would propose legislation to "clarify" the law post-Newman.
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Game Over: Supreme Court Denies Appeal in Newman Case
The U.S. Supreme Court has specifically included the landmark insider-trading case of U.S. v. Newman on a lengthy list of cases in which the Court denied certiorari (will not hear on appeal). The Court’s refusal to hear the case means that Newman will continue to pose a major, often insurmountable ...
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Final Trial Scorecard for FY 2015: SEC Goes Undefeated in 6 Trials
The SEC went undefeated in its six federal court trials in FY 2015, posting a record of 4-0-2. The SEC conducted far fewer trials than it did in FY 2014, but it was more successful. Check out the complete list of trials and the results in each case here.
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How Do Small Groups Produce So Much 'Anti-Mary Jo White' Noise?
In the past, it took a lot of dissatisfied people to make a lot of noise. We continue to learn that in the social media era, a very small number of dissatisfied people with the right tools and tactics can generate just as much noise!
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The Curious Incident of the 'Life Coach' and the Press Release
The SEC loves to craft press release headlines that feature defendants' interesting or high-profile jobs, but it missed a golden opportunity to do just that in its announcement of an insider trading case last week.
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SEC Trial Scorecard Update: Jury Finds for SEC in Insider Trading Case
With just five days remaining in FY 2015, the SEC notched another victory at trial yesterday when a federal jury in Illinois found two men liable for insider trading in the securities of three acquisition targets. The case represented the SEC's sixth trial verdict in federal court in FY 2015.
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Lessons From SEC’s First Cybersecurity Enforcement Action
This week, the SEC fined investment advisory firm R.T. Jones Capital Equities Management for failing to establish required cyber-security policies and procedures, which later led to a breach that compromised the personal data of roughly 100,000 customers. It is the first enforcement action the SEC has brought against a regulated ...
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Coming Soon: 'The Big Short' Movie to be Released Dec. 2015
'The Big Short,' a film based on the best-selling book by Michael Lewis about traders who foresaw and profited massively on the collapse of the housing and subprime credit market in 2007-08, will open nationwide on December 23. Check out the trailer and details about the film's star-studded cast here.
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Report Highlights Cybersecurity Risks to Accountants
A lot has been written here and elsewhere about the cybersecurity risks to law firms, but a recent report by ACCA USA highlights another, similarly situated profession that has not received as much attention: accountants.
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Advocacy Group Rolls Out 'Dump (Mary Jo) Truck' on D.C. Streets
What stunts are even left for the next disgruntled advocacy group to pursue? Skywriters? Taking over the television airwaves to deliver a message like the Joker in Batman? Falconers? Stay tuned!
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Newman Decision Leads to Rare Loss for SEC in an AP
SEC Administrative Law Judge Jason Patil dismissed an insider-trading case against a former Wells Fargo trader, noting that the SEC failed to prove that the person who allegedly tipped the trader did so for a personal benefit, as required by the Second Circuit’s disruptive opinion in U.S. v. Newman. Patil ...