Securities

  • March 03, 2025

    Aspiration Founder Arrested For Alleged $145M Fraud Scheme

    Joseph Sanberg, co-founder of the celebrity-backed and sustainability-focused financial services company Aspiration Partners Inc., was arrested Monday over federal criminal allegations he schemed to defraud investor funds out of at least $145 million, federal prosecutors in California announced.

  • March 03, 2025

    SEC Expands Confidential Filing Options For Companies

    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Monday said it is expanding the range of filings that companies can submit for confidential review before such documents become public, predicting that the new accommodations will spur capital formation.

  • March 03, 2025

    Judge Tosses SEC Crypto Case For Lack Of US Ties

    Crypto founder Richard Heart has beaten a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission suit over his Hex, PulseChain and PulseX crypto projects after the Brooklyn federal judge overseeing the case found the regulator failed to show enough stateside ties.

  • March 03, 2025

    FDIC Beats Bank's Constitutional Fight Over In-House Judges

    A Kansas federal judge tossed on Monday a local bank's constitutional challenge to administrative law judges presiding over the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.'s $20.5 million anti-money laundering enforcement proceeding against the bank, ruling that the district court does not have the jurisdictional authority to hear the bank's Seventh Amendment claims.

  • March 03, 2025

    Adviser Funneled Investor Cash Into $300M Ponzi, Suit Says

    A Georgia financial adviser has been hit with a proposed class action alleging that she funneled investors into a company at the heart of what the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has called a $300 million Ponzi scheme.

  • March 03, 2025

    Broker Can't Use Jarkesy To Slip SEC's Pre-IPO Fraud Suit

    A New York federal judge on Monday ordered an unregistered broker-dealer and its managing member to comply with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's administrative order requiring them to pay roughly $3.5 million to settle claims they made over $65 million selling interests in a portfolio of companies that hadn't yet gone public.

  • March 03, 2025

    SEC's Peirce Taps Ex-Willkie Partner For Crypto Task Force

    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has hired a former Willkie Farr & Gallagher LLP partner into a leadership role in its new task force created to transform the agency's approach toward the cryptocurrency industry.

  • March 03, 2025

    Some 'ComEd Four' Bribery Counts Vacated Over Jury Charge

    An Illinois federal judge on Monday ordered a retrial on four bribery charges in the case against an ex-Commonwealth Edison executive and three lobbyists convicted of conspiring to bribe former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan, finding the jury was improperly instructed in the wake of a recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling but leaving intact the overarching conspiracy conviction.

  • March 03, 2025

    Jarkesy Can't Get Penny Stock Co. Out Of SEC Penalty

    The Second Circuit on Monday upheld the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's courtroom victory against a penny stock company found to have misled its investors about its financial state, ruling that the company couldn't lean on the U.S. Supreme Court's Jarkesy ruling to argue that a jury should have determined its punishment.

  • March 03, 2025

    Eckert Seamans Will Pay $38M To Par Funding Investors

    A Florida federal judge has signed off on a $38 million deal resolving legal malpractice claims against Eckert Seamans Cherin & Mellott LLC by investors who fell victim to a Ponzi scheme carried out by Par Funding, which enlisted the firm to help create the business model the lender ultimately used in the scheme.

  • March 03, 2025

    Chancery OKs Amended Suit In $8B Paramount Sale Fight

    Delaware's chancellor agreed Monday to the filing of an amended stockholder challenge to Paramount Global's $8.2 billion merger with Skydance Media and ordered responses by Tuesday from parties affected by a stockholder call for a fast-tracked probe of Paramount's response to an alternative, $13.5 billion offer.

  • March 03, 2025

    Kraken Joins Crypto Cos. Announcing SEC Case Dismissals

    Crypto exchange Kraken said Monday that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission is also walking away from its registration suit amid a bevy of crypto case dismissals and investigation closures that have come as part of a new approach to digital asset policy.

  • March 03, 2025

    Defendant Admits To 'Shell Factory' Pump-And-Dump Scheme

    The final defendant rounded up in the "Shell Factory Fraud" prosecution of a group that created fake shell companies as part of a pump-and-dump scheme pled guilty Monday in Miami to one count of securities fraud.

  • March 03, 2025

    3rd Circ. Preview: Litigation Funder, J&J Seek Relief In March

    The Third Circuit's case lineup this month will task panels with determining if an American litigation funder can keep its dispute with a German law firm in federal court, and whether Johnson & Johnson can decertify class claims accusing the company of artificially inflating its stock price by failing to disclose the alleged cancer risks of its talc products.

  • March 03, 2025

    Former SDNY Top Prosecutor Kim Returns To Private Sector

    Veteran white-collar defense lawyer Edward Kim, who most recently served as acting U.S. attorney for the Southern District of New York, said Monday he is returning to the firm he founded, Krieger Lewin LLP, which will be known as KKL.

  • March 03, 2025

    Coinbase Wants To Know SEC Spend On Crypto Enforcement

    Crypto exchange Coinbase wants to know how much the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission spent on its "regulation-by-enforcement campaign" against crypto firms under previous Chair Gary Gensler, according to a Freedom of Information Act request submitted on Monday.

  • March 03, 2025

    White & Case Hires Litigator Trio In New York From Weil

    White & Case LLP announced Monday that it has continued its expansion in New York with the addition of a trio of litigators from Weil Gotshal & Manges LLP, including the co-head of Weil's global litigation practice.

  • February 28, 2025

    SEC, Ex-Silvergate CFO Trade Shots Over Enforcement Case

    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Friday urged a New York federal court not to throw out its claims that the former chief financial officer of defunct crypto-focused bank Silvergate Capital concealed the bank's rocky financial position, saying that the executive is mischaracterizing its claims.

  • February 28, 2025

    Del. Judge Orders Trial On AMC Stock Swap Coverage Fight

    A Delaware Superior Court judge ordered a jury trial Friday on an AMC Entertainment Holdings Inc. insurer's claim that it never consented to cover part of a $99.3 million settlement with theater chain stockholders who challenged a preferred share conversion and reverse stock split.

  • February 28, 2025

    Space Co. Lied About Rocket Launch Timeline, Investors Say

    Aerospace company Rocket Lab USA Inc. has been hit with a proposed shareholder class action in California federal court alleging it intentionally concealed issues that would delay the test and commercial launches of a vehicle it developed.

  • February 28, 2025

    Beyond Meat Fries Investors' Fast-Food Production Woes Suit

    A Los Angeles federal judge has tossed, for good, a reworked investor class action accusing Beyond Meat of concealing major problems with its efforts to scale production on plant-based meat substitutes for fast-food chains like McDonald's, KFC and Pizza Hut.

  • February 28, 2025

    SEC's Crypto Turn Could Undermine Staff, Dem Member Says

    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's sole Democratic member has spoken out against its postelection retreat from prosecuting crypto cases, warning that recent actions like the voluntary dismissal of a lawsuit against Coinbase threaten to undermine the agency's enforcement staff.

  • February 28, 2025

    Aimmune Shareholders' $27.5M Deal Over Sale To Nestle OK'd

    Aimmune Therapeutics Inc. stockholders won preliminary approval in California federal court on Friday for a $27.5 million settlement of their securities fraud class action alleging that Aimmune was falsely undervalued before its merger with Nestlé Health Science SA.

  • February 28, 2025

    Bioventus Hit With Del. Derivative Suit After NC Class Deal

    A Bioventus Inc. stockholder sued 15 current and former directors and officers of the medical device venture in Delaware's Court of Chancery to recover for the company tens of millions in losses tied to alleged mismanagement and corporate duty failures over a two year period.

  • February 28, 2025

    NY Man Found Guilty Of $7M Crypto Investment Scheme

    A New York man has been found guilty by a California federal jury of 14 counts related to allegations that he stole millions of dollars' worth of investment funds and moved them to sports betting sites located outside the U.S.

Expert Analysis

  • The Bar Needs More Clarity On The Discovery Objection Rule

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    Almost 10 years after Federal Rule of Civil Procedure 34 was amended, attorneys still seem confused about what they should include in objections to discovery requests, and until the rules committee provides additional clarity, practitioners must beware the steep costs of noncompliance, says Tristan Ellis at Shanies Law Office.

  • The AI Consumer Class Action Threat Is Not A Hallucination

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    As regulators scrutinize whether businesses can deliver on claims about their artificial intelligence products and services, the industry faces a wave of consumer fraud class actions — but AI companies can protect themselves by prioritizing fundamental best practices that are often overlooked, say Ronald Levine at Herrick Feinstein and Richard Torrenzano at the Torrenzano Group.

  • What's Next For The CFTC After The Election

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    While much of the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission's enforcement actions in line with its traditional priorities will continue as usual in the near term, postelection leadership changes at the CFTC and new congressional priorities may alter the commission's regulatory framework in 2025 and beyond — particularly its oversight of crypto, say attorneys at WilmerHale.

  • Del. Dispatch: Clarifying Charter Amendment Vote Obligations

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    The Delaware Court of Chancery recently held in Gunderson v. The Trade Desk that only a majority stockholder vote is needed to approve a company's proposed reincorporation from Delaware to Nevada through a corporate conversion, which bodes well for other companies also considering leaving the First State, say attorneys at Fried Frank.

  • What's Still Up In The Air After Ruling On Calif. Climate Laws

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    A California federal court's recent ruling on challenges to California's sweeping climate disclosure laws resolved some issues, but allows litigation over the constitutionality of the laws to continue, and leaves many important questions on what entities will need to do to comply with the laws unanswered, say attorneys at Paul Hastings.

  • Series

    Being A Navy Reservist Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Serving this country in uniform has not only been one of the greatest honors of my life, but it has also provided me with opportunities to broaden my legal acumen and interpersonal skills in ways that have indelibly contributed to my civilian practice, says Phillip Smith at Weinberg Wheeler.

  • Navigating DOJ's Patchwork Whistleblower Regime

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    In the past few months, the U.S. Department of Justice and several individual U.S. attorney’s offices have issued different pilot programs aimed at incentivizing individuals to blow the whistle on misconduct, but this piecemeal approach may create confusion and suboptimal outcomes, say attorneys at BakerHostetler.

  • So You Want To Move Your Law Practice To Canada, Eh?

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    Google searches for how to move to Canada have surged in the wake of the U.S. presidential election, and if you’re an attorney considering a move to the Great White North, you’ll need to understand how the practice of law differs across the border, says David Postel at Henein Hutchison.

  • A Look At Similarities Between SOX And SEC's Cyber Rule

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    Just as the Sarbanes-Oxley Act paved the way for greater transparency and accountability in financial reporting, the SEC's cybersecurity rule is doing much the same for cybersecurity, ensuring that companies are resilient in the face of growing cyber threats, says Padraic O'Reilly at CyberSaint.

  • Trump Rollback Of Biden Enviro Policies: What To Expect

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    Donald Trump's upcoming second presidential term will usher significant shifts in U.S. environmental and natural resource law and policy — and while the Biden administration is racing to secure its legacy, the incoming Trump administration is making plans to dramatically roll back most, if not all, of Biden's environmental initiatives, say attorneys at Beveridge & Diamond.

  • Class Actions At The Circuit Courts: November Lessons

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    In this month's review of class action appeals, Mitchell Engel at Shook Hardy discusses six federal court decisions that touch on Rule 23 of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure, and when individual inquiries are needed to prove economic loss.

  • 5 Areas Congress May Investigate After GOP Election Wins

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    With Republicans poised to take control of Congress in addition to the executive branch next year, private companies can expect an unprecedented uptick in congressional investigations focused on five key areas, including cryptocurrency and healthcare, say attorneys at Cahill Gordon.

  • Trump's 2nd Term May Be A Boost To Banking Industry

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    President-elect Donald Trump's personnel appointments could be instrumental in reshaping the financial regulatory landscape during his second administration, likely allowing for greater merger activity and halting or undoing some of the Biden administration's more restrictive financial services policies, say attorneys at Debevoise.

  • Why K-Cup Claims Landed Keurig In Hot Water With SEC

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    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's recent settlement with Keurig Dr. Pepper for making incomplete statements regarding the recyclability of K-cup pods highlights the importance of comprehensive corporate disclosures, particularly with respect to ESG matters, say attorneys at BCLP.

  • Legislation Most Likely To Pass In Lame Duck Session

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    As Congress begins its five-week post-election lame duck session, attorneys at Greenberg Traurig break down the legislative priorities and which proposals can be expected to pass.

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