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White Collar
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September 20, 2024
'Con Man' Who Faked Atty Emails In Biz Scam Gets 30 Mos.
A Manhattan federal judge hit a former investment analyst with 30 months in prison Friday for stealing $2.4 million from backers who thought he planned to invest in a retail startup, tricking them in part by impersonating an unnamed New York City lawyer.
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September 20, 2024
Insurer Settles Conn. Suit Over Theft From Theater Group
Philadelphia Indemnity Insurance Co. has settled a dispute with a Florida couple who the insurer says bilked its policyholder, a theater education group, out of nearly $588,000 for their own personal use.
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September 20, 2024
Ex-Harvard Football Player Fraudulently Raised $3M, Suit Says
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission alleges in a new suit that a former Harvard football player swindled more than $3 million from two dozen investors by promising them that their money would be used for sports-related investments when, in reality, it was used for the defendant's personal expenses, such as rent for a multimillion-dollar home.
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September 20, 2024
'Free Karen Read' Protest Case Is Moot, 1st Circ. Says
The First Circuit has bowed out of hearing a First Amendment challenge brought by protesters who gathered outside a business run by a witness in Karen Read's first trial for the alleged murder of her boyfriend, ruling that the dispute centering on the Massachusetts witness intimidation law was moot.
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September 20, 2024
Avenatti Seeks Top Court Review Of Daniels ID Theft Verdict
Incarcerated celebrity attorney Michael Avenatti has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to review his conviction for misappropriating money from ex-client Stormy Daniels, claiming the Second Circuit's decision upholding the verdict runs afoul of precedent for identity-theft cases.
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September 20, 2024
Houston Judge Won't Take Up Prosecutor License Issue
A Houston judge declined to take up allegations that a government prosecutor participated in a case against a Texas surgeon while her law license was suspended, denying the doctor's show cause motion in a brief order Thursday.
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September 20, 2024
Sheriff Who Shot Judge Had Depo Scheduled In Rape Suit
The county sheriff who fatally shot a Kentucky state judge Thursday is a defendant in a federal lawsuit alleging one of his deputies repeatedly raped a woman in the judge's chambers.
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September 20, 2024
Off The Bench: Favre Flops, Dolan Escapes, Betting Cos. Sued
In this week's Off The Bench, retired quarterback Brett Favre can't revive a defamation suit against fellow NFL Hall of Famer Shannon Sharpe, New York Knicks owner James Dolan is spared from federal sex-trafficking claims, and two sports-betting giants face new suits over their use of MLB player images.
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September 20, 2024
Trump Again Asks To Delay Evidence In DC Election Suit
Attorneys for former President Donald Trump again asked the Washington, D.C., federal judge overseeing his election interference case to push back a highly anticipated evidentiary filing from prosecutors, saying special counsel Jack Smith's office shouldn't be allowed to publicly lay out evidence until the court addresses Trump's concerns about the scope of discovery.
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September 19, 2024
Dechert Settles Aviation Exec's Hack Cover-Up RICO Claims
An airline mogul has cut a confidential deal with Dechert and two former partners of the firm to let them off the hook in his sprawling civil Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act lawsuit in New York federal court, the settling parties announced Thursday.
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September 19, 2024
Why Justice Thomas' Gifts Probe Is Likely Taking So Long
The federal judiciary's governing body has spent more than a year reviewing complaints alleging U.S. Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas unlawfully failed to disclose decades of luxury gifts and travel. Ethics watchdogs argue it's time to wrap up the investigation, but politics — in every sense of the word — may cause further delay.
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September 19, 2024
4th Circ. Won't Flip Fraud Convictions Over Unseen Jury
The Fourth Circuit has refused to overturn two men's investment-fraud convictions over complaints that COVID safety protocols made the jury invisible to the public, but vacated part of one sentence because probation conditions weren't adequately spelled out.
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September 19, 2024
Feds Can't Order $31M To Refill Class Funds, 3rd Circ. Told
A New Jersey man convicted for stealing $40 million from settlements in stockholder class actions told a Third Circuit panel Thursday the multimillion-dollar restitution ordered at his sentencing is unlawful and should be vacated, arguing that the settlements weren't harmed.
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September 19, 2024
Republicans Air Grievances At House Hearing on FTC Practices
The Federal Trade Commission ought to stick to combating consumer scams and leave the competition regulation alone — that was the general tenor of Republicans on Wednesday morning at a House hearing about the agency's past and present practices.
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September 19, 2024
10th Circ. Says Disbarred Atty Mooted Appeal With Guilty Plea
The Tenth Circuit dismissed a disbarred immigration attorney's efforts at obtaining an injunction that would force a state court to appoint counsel for her in a forgery case, saying Thursday that she mooted her own appeal by pleading guilty.
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September 19, 2024
Ill. High Court Says Pot Smell Not Grounds For Vehicle Search
Illinois's highest court on Thursday ruled that the smell of burned marijuana does not constitute grounds for a warrantless vehicle search, given that the state legalized recreational marijuana prior to the traffic stop.
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September 19, 2024
Mich. Atty Gets 1 Year For Inflating Apartment Values
A Michigan attorney and real estate executive was sentenced Thursday to one year and a day in prison for inflating how profitable his company's apartments were, allowing him to sell them for more than $500 million.
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September 19, 2024
Florida Banker Denies Laundering Money For Father
A Florida banker pled not guilty Thursday to federal charges connected to laundering money for his father, who was convicted for his role in a corruption scandal involving canceling fines for a defective hydroelectric dam in exchange for millions in bribes while he served as Ecuador's comptroller.
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September 19, 2024
Convicted Drexel Professor Won't Get New Tax Evasion Trial
A Drexel University accounting professor was denied a new trial after being convicted on tax evasion charges for failing to report $3.3 million in income from a Trenton pharmacy, a New Jersey federal judge has ruled, reasoning that the professor's case was not prejudiced by keeping accounting records related to his tax returns from the jury.
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September 19, 2024
Senate Panel Holds Steward CEO In Contempt After No-Show
A U.S. Senate committee voted unanimously Thursday to hold Steward Health Care CEO Ralph de la Torre in civil and criminal contempt after he defied a subpoena to testify about the bankrupt health system's downfall.
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September 19, 2024
'Biblical Values' Firm To Pay $300K For Misleading Investors
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Thursday order Idaho-based investment adviser Inspire Investing LLC to pay a $300,000 fine on allegations it made misleading statements and failed to institute compliance measures related to the firm's execution of its "biblically responsible investing" strategy.
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September 19, 2024
Scammers Bilked At Least $230M In Bitcoin, Feds Say
Two people were arrested and charged with conspiring to steal and launder at least $230 million in bitcoin, allegedly using online monikers like "Anne Hathaway" and "VersaceGod," federal prosecutors said Thursday.
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September 19, 2024
Ex-Williams Sonoma Worker Bilked $11M In Scam, Feds Say
A former Williams Sonoma employee was indicted in California federal court over a yearslong scheme in which he allegedly defrauded the company out of $11 million after submitting fraudulent invoices for work that was never performed by a fictitious staffing business he secretly owned, the U.S. Attorney's Office announced.
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September 19, 2024
Outcome Exec Who Flipped Gets 7 Months For $1B Fraud Role
A former Outcome Health sales chief who was charged with helping to carry out a $1 billion fraud, but cooperated early and testified against his co-defendants, received seven months in prison Thursday for his role in the scheme.
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September 19, 2024
Macquarie Unit To Pay $80M To End SEC's Overvaluation Claims
A subsidiary of Australian financial services company Macquarie Group Ltd. agreed Thursday to pay the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission nearly $80 million to settle charges it overvalued largely illiquid mortgage-backed securities and carried out cross-trades that favored certain clients over others.
Expert Analysis
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Think Like A Lawyer: Dance The Legal Standard Two-Step
From rookie brief writers to Chief Justice John Roberts, lawyers should master the legal standard two-step — framing the governing standard at the outset, and clarifying why they meet that standard — which has benefits for both the drafter and reader, says Luke Andrews at Poole Huffman.
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Recent Settlement Shows 'China Initiative' Has Life After Death
Though the U.S. Department of Justice shuttered its controversial China Initiative two years ago, its recent False Claims Act settlement with the Cleveland Clinic Foundation demonstrates that prosecutors are more than willing to civilly pursue research institutions whose employees were previously targeted, say attorneys at Benesch.
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DOJ Innovasis Settlement Offers Lessons On Self-Disclosure
The recent $12 million settlement with Innovasis and two of its executives demonstrates the U.S. Department of Justice's continued prioritization of Anti-Kickback Statute enforcement amid the growing circuit split over causation, and illustrates important nuances surrounding self-disclosure, say Denise Barnes and Scott Gallisdorfer at Bass Berry.
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Opinion
OFAC Sanctions Deserve To Be Challenged Post-Chevron
The U.S. Supreme Court's Loper Bright decision opens the door to challenges against the Office of Foreign Assets Control's sanctions regime, the unintended consequences of which raise serious questions about the wisdom of what appears to be a scorched-earth approach, says Solomon Shinerock at Lewis Baach.
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Opinion
After Jarkesy, IRS Must Course-Correct On Captive Insurance
The U.S. Supreme Court’s recent Securities and Exchange Commission v. Jarkesy decision has profound implications for other agencies, including the IRS, which must stop ignoring due process and curtailing congressional intent in its policing of captive insurance arrangements, says Peter Dawson at the 831(b) Institute.
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Congress Quietly Amends FEPA: What Cos. Should Do Now
Last week, Congress revised the Foreign Extortion Prevention Act — passed last year to criminalize demand-side foreign bribery — to address inconsistencies and better harmonize the law with the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, and companies should review their compliance programs accordingly, say Mark Mendelsohn and Benjamin Klein at Paul Weiss.
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NYSE Delisting May Be The Cost Of FCPA Compliance
ABB’s recent decision to delist its U.S. depository receipts from the New York Stock Exchange, coupled with having settled three Foreign Corrupt Practices Act enforcement actions, begs the question of whether the cost of FCPA compliance should factor into a company's decision to remain listed in the U.S., says John Joy at FTI Law.
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CFTC Action Highlights Necessity Of Whistleblower Carveouts
The U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission's novel settlement with a trading firm over allegations of manipulating the market and failing to create contract carveouts for employees to freely communicate with investigators serves as a beacon for further enforcement activity from the CFTC and other regulators, say attorneys at Davis Wright.
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Avoiding Legal Ethics Landmines In Preindictment Meetings
U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez's recent bribery conviction included obstruction charges based on his former lawyer's preindictment presentation to prosecutors, highlighting valuable lessons on the legal ethics rules implicated in these kinds of defense presentations, say Steve Miller and Hilary Gerzhoy at HWG.
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Series
Being A Luthier Makes Me A Better Lawyer
When I’m not working as an appellate lawyer, I spend my spare time building guitars — a craft known as luthiery — which has helped to enhance the discipline, patience and resilience needed to write better briefs, says Rob Carty at Nichols Brar.
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Lead Like 'Ted Lasso' By Embracing Cognitive Diversity
The Apple TV+ series “Ted Lasso” aptly illustrates how embracing cognitive diversity can be a winning strategy for teams, providing a useful lesson for law firms, which can benefit significantly from fresh, diverse perspectives and collaborative problem-solving, says Paul Manuele at PR Manuele Consulting.
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3 Areas Of Enforcement Risk Facing The EV Industry
Companies in the EV manufacturing ecosystem are experiencing a boom in business, but with this boom comes increased regulatory and enforcement risks, from the corruption issues that have historically pervaded the extractive sector to newer risks posed by artificial intelligence, say attorneys at MoFo.
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Boeing Plea Deal Is A Mixed Bag, Providing Lessons For Cos.
The plea deal for conspiracy to defraud regulators that Boeing has tentatively agreed to will, on the one hand, probably help the company avoid further reputational damage, but also demonstrates to companies that deferred prosecution agreements have real teeth, and that noncompliance with DPA terms can be costly, says Edmund Vickers at Red Lion Chambers.
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Justices' Criminal Law Decisions: The Term In Review
Each of the 11 criminal decisions issued in the U.S. Supreme Court’s recently concluded term is independently important, but taken together, they reveal trends in the court’s broader approach to criminal law, presenting both pitfalls and opportunities for defendants and their counsel, says Kenneth Notter at MoloLamken.
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25 Years Of OECD's Anti-Bribery Convention
Marking its 25th anniversary this year, the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development's anti-bribery convention has advanced legislative reforms and reshaped corporate conduct in dozens of countries amid the persistent challenges of uneven enforcement and political pressure, say attorneys at Debevoise.