White Collar

  • August 16, 2024

    SEC Gets Default Entry Against Crypto Ponzi Scheme Aids

    A Washington federal court entered an order of default against two accused Ponzi scheme promoters on Friday, after the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission said the pair failed to address its allegations that they helped the creator of a purported cryptocurrency trading bot service scam investors out of $295 million.

  • August 16, 2024

    Developer's Widow Sues For Control Of Century Homebuilders

    The widow of Sergio Pino, the late founder and CEO of Century Homebuilders Group LLC, filed suit asking a Florida state court to declare her the sole owner of the company and "to finally put an end to unlawful efforts" by his estate and his brother to claim otherwise.

  • August 16, 2024

    Convicted Crypto Mixer Says Feds' 30-Year Ask Too High

    The convicted operator of the Bitcoin Fog crypto mixing service urged a Washington, D.C., federal judge to disregard federal prosecutors' 30-year recommendation and instead levy a below-guidelines sentence, arguing the scale of his money laundering operation isn't indicative of harm done.

  • August 16, 2024

    Atty Gets 32 Months In Prison For Bribing Chicago Alderman

    An Illinois federal judge on Friday sentenced an immigration attorney and real estate developer convicted of bribing former Chicago Alderman Ed Burke to two years and eight months in prison, maintaining prison time is warranted because the lawyer initiated the bribe and tried to hide it from federal agents and the grand jury.

  • August 16, 2024

    'Brazen' Plot To Steal Graceland From Presleys Nets Charges

    A woman was charged in Missouri federal court Friday with attempting a wild scheme to defraud the family of Elvis Presley by auctioning the late singer's iconic Graceland estate and pocketing the proceeds, a plot that was only foiled when suspicious minds raised red flags.

  • August 16, 2024

    Ex-CEO Wants Verdict In COVID Test Kit Fraud Case Tossed

    A former healthcare software executive found guilty of securities fraud for publicly touting a $670 million COVID test kit deal that ultimately collapsed wants his conviction thrown out, telling a New Jersey federal judge the government failed to establish every element of the crime.

  • August 16, 2024

    Jury Says Lin Wood Must Pay $750K In Defamation Case Fees

    A day after returning a $3.75 million verdict against retired Atlanta defamation attorney Lin Wood in the defamation case brought against him by three of his former law partners, a Georgia federal jury on Friday said he must also pay $750,000 toward their attorney fees and costs. 

  • August 16, 2024

    SEC Seeks Default Judgment In $8.4M Ponzi Scheme Case

    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has asked for a default win in its suit against a pair of investment firms that allegedly took part in an $8.4 million Ponzi scheme, arguing the request is warranted after the firms' owners tried unsuccessfully to file pro se responses on the firms' behalf.

  • August 16, 2024

    Ga. AG Taps Prosecutor To Head Organized Retail Crime Unit

    Georgia Attorney General Chris Carr said Friday that he's hired Timothy Ruffini to lead a new organized retail crime unit focused on prosecuting criminal networks behind thefts and violence against Peach State businesses.

  • August 16, 2024

    Psilocybin Right-To-Try Petition To Get 9th Circ. Hearing

    A Ninth Circuit panel will hear oral arguments Monday in an appeal brought by a Seattle doctor seeking to administer psilocybin to terminal cancer patients under state and federal right-to-try laws.

  • August 19, 2024

    Connecticut Litigation Highlights Of 2024: A Midyear Report

    Several high-stakes Connecticut cases came to a close in the first half of 2024, resulting in the resolution of a Frontier Communications' $21.8 million feud with its ex-CEO, and a $26.5 million deal for RTX Corp. subcontractors and employees who alleged anticompetitive no-poach agreements prevented them from advancing their careers.

  • August 16, 2024

    NC Litigation Highlights Of 2024: A Midyear Report

    Several high profile cases in North Carolina came to a close in the first half of the year, from a second bribery conviction against an insurance magnate beset by legal woes, to the anticlimactic withdrawal of a state Supreme Court justice's much-watched free speech suit. Here, Law360 looks at those and other notable rulings so far in North Carolina.

  • August 15, 2024

    Tom Girardi Has Dementia, USC Neurologist Tells Calif. Jury

    A University of Southern California neurology professor testified Thursday in Tom Girardi's California federal criminal trial that she diagnosed him with mild-to-moderate dementia months after his law firm collapsed, although the lawyer insisted at the time that his memory was fine and that he was still busily working at his firm.

  • August 15, 2024

    Colo. Atty Sues Bank, Opposing Counsel Over Hack Attack

    A Colorado attorney and conservative radio personality is suing Wells Fargo and opposing counsel in a divorce proceeding over their alleged role in a hacking incident that apparently caused him to wire $375,000 for a client's divorce settlement to Hong Kong.

  • August 15, 2024

    Collin County Gets Win In Ken Paxton Prosecution Fee Fight

    A Texas appeals court handed Collin County a victory Thursday in a long-running fight over how much special prosecutors should get paid for the criminal case against Texas Attorney General Ken Paxton, ordering the trial court to vacate its past orders awarding attorney fees to the prosecutors.

  • August 15, 2024

    Matthew Perry's Assistant And 2 Drs. Charged In Actor's Death

    The former personal assistant for actor Matthew Perry and two doctors have been criminally charged in connection with the "Friends" star's death last year from an overdose of ketamine, according to a criminal complaint unsealed Thursday in California federal court.

  • August 15, 2024

    Trump's $100M Tort Claim Against DOJ Faces Uphill Climb

    Experts say Donald Trump's $100 million claim against the federal government for the search of his Mar-a-Lago estate and the prosecution of the allegedly illegal retention of classified documents there will be an uphill climb for the former president because of the limited application of the Federal Tort Claims Act.

  • August 15, 2024

    2nd Circ. Won't Revive Platinum Investors' Ch. 7 Challenge

    A New York bankruptcy court correctly refused to overturn the approval of a $2.5 million settlement in the bankruptcy of a founder of defunct hedge fund Platinum Partners, the Second Circuit ruled Thursday, finding that the approved deal was superior to an alternative offer.

  • August 15, 2024

    New Study Shows No Link Between Bail Reform, Crime Rates

    Bail reform has had no statistical impact on crime rates across the country, according to a study released by the Brennan Center for Justice at New York University School of Law on Thursday.

  • August 15, 2024

    SEC Nabs $5.75M Judgment Against Unregistered Broker

    A Florida man and his business have agreed to pay the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission $5.75 million to end claims they operated as unregistered broker-dealers for at least four years.

  • August 15, 2024

    Lin Wood Must Pay Ex-Partners $3.75M, Ga. Jurors Say

    A Georgia federal jury said Thursday that controversial ex-attorney Lin Wood must pay $3.75 million to his three former law partners and cover their attorney fees and costs, with the exact amount of those fees to be determined Friday morning.

  • August 15, 2024

    NJ Gov. To Replace Menendez With Former Chief Of Staff

    New Jersey Gov. Phil Murphy officially announced on Friday that his former chief of staff, George Helmy, will serve out the term of convicted U.S. Sen. Bob Menendez, D-N.J., whose resignation takes effect Aug. 20.

  • August 15, 2024

    Judge Gives Plaintiffs' Attys $1M In Fees For Derivative Row

    A Massachusetts federal judge sliced 60% off a request for attorney fees in a shareholder derivative lawsuit Wednesday, awarding plaintiffs' counsel $1 million for their work on the case, which led to a noncash settlement.

  • August 15, 2024

    Montana Sen. Tester Says BIA Must Do More To Protect Tribes

    The senior U.S. senator from Montana has asked the Biden administration to authorize an independent review of the Bureau of Indian Affairs' efforts to ensure the public safety of Native American tribes in the state, saying a dire lack of trained law enforcement officers is "unacceptable."

  • August 15, 2024

    Del. Chancery OKs $175M Judgment Against Insys Founder

    The convicted founder of drugmaker Insys has told Delaware's Chancery Court he agreed to accept a $175 million judgment as part of a settlement with the company's liquidation trust over his role in an opioid kickback scheme that drove the firm into bankruptcy.

Expert Analysis

  • How Justices Upended The Administrative Procedure Act

    Author Photo

    In its recent Loper Bright, Corner Post and Jakesy decisions, the U.S. Supreme Court fundamentally changed the Administrative Procedure Act in ways that undermine Congress and the executive branch, shift power to the judiciary, curtail public and business input, and create great uncertainty, say Alene Taber and Beth Hummer at Hanson Bridgett.

  • Parsing FY 2024 DOJ Criminal Healthcare Fraud Enforcement

    Author Photo

    While the U.S. Department of Justice's Criminal Division's strike force on healthcare fraud enforcement action shows an impressive doubling of criminal indictments, a closer look at the data offers important clues about underlying trends, including the comparably modest, accompanying increase in associated intended loss, say Roderick Thomas and Kathleen Cooperstein at Wiley.

  • FTC Drives Crackdown On Connected Cars' Data Privacy Risk

    Author Photo

    After the Federal Trade Commission's warning to automakers about data privacy, which continues to emerge as a national concern, automakers must carefully examine their data collection, use and retention practices, say Catherine Castaldo and Michael Rubayo at Reed Smith.

  • Jarkesy May Thwart Consumer Agencies' Civil Penalty Power

    Author Photo

    The U.S. Supreme Court's ruling in U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission v. Jarkesy not only implicates future SEC administrative adjudications, but those of other agencies that operate similarly — and may stymie regulators' efforts to levy civil monetary penalties in a range of consumer protection enforcement actions, say attorneys at Holland & Knight.

  • Lessons From Recent SEC Cyber Enforcement Actions

    Author Photo

    The recent guidance by the SEC's Division of Corporation Finance is helpful to any company facing a cybersecurity threat, but just as instructive are the warnings raised by the SEC's recent enforcement actions against SolarWinds, R.R. Donnelley and Intercontinental Exchange, say attorneys at O'Melveny.

  • Trump's Best Hush Money Appeal Options Still Likely To Fail

    Author Photo

    The two strongest potential arguments former President Donald Trump could raise in appealing his New York hush money conviction seem promising at first, but precedent strongly suggests they will still ultimately fail — though, of course, Trump's unique position could lead to surprising results, says former New York Supreme Court Justice Ethan Greenberg, now at Anderson Kill.

  • 2 Vital Trial Principles Endure Amid Tech Advances

    Author Photo

    Progress in trial technologies in the last 10 years has been transformative for courtroom presentations, but two core communication axioms are still relevant in today's world of drone footage evidence and 3D animations, say Adam Bloomberg and Lisa Walters at IMS Legal Strategies.

  • Inside OCC's Retail Nondeposit Investment Products Refresh

    Author Photo

    In addition to clarifying safe and sound risk management practices generally, the Office of the Comptroller of the Currency's revised booklet on retail nondeposit investment products updates its guidance around certain sales practices in light of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's adoption of Regulation Best Interest, say attorneys at Debevoise.

  • 5 Defense Lessons From Prosecutors' Recent Evidence Flubs

    Author Photo

    The recent dismissal of Alec Baldwin’s involuntary manslaughter charges, and the filing of an ethics complaint against a former D.C. prosecutor, both provide takeaways for white collar defense counsel who suspect that prosecutors may be withholding or misrepresenting evidence, say Anden Chow at MoloLamken and Jonathan Porter at Husch Blackwell.

  • Mirror, Mirror On The Wall, Is My Counterclaim Bound To Fall?

    Author Photo

    A Pennsylvania federal court’s recent dismissal of the defendants’ counterclaims in Morgan v. Noss should remind attorneys to avoid the temptation to repackage a claim’s facts and law into a mirror-image counterclaim, as this approach will often result in a waste of time and resources, says Matthew Selmasska at Kaufman Dolowich.

  • Why The SEC Is Targeting Short-And-Distort Schemes

    Author Photo

    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's recent crackdown on the illegal practice of short-and-distort trades highlights the urgent need for public companies to adopt proactive measures, including pursuing private rights of action, say attorneys at Baker McKenzie.

  • 6 Factors That Can Make For A 'Nuclear' Juror

    Author Photo

    Drawing from recent research that examines the rise in nuclear verdicts, Ken Broda-Bahm at Persuasion Strategies identifies a few juror characteristics most likely to matter in assessing case risk and preparing for jury selection — some of which are long-known, and others that are emerging post-pandemic.

  • DOJ Paths To Limit FARA Fallout From Wynn's DC Circ. Win

    Author Photo

    After the D.C. Circuit’s recent Attorney General v. Wynn ruling, holding that the government cannot compel retroactive registration under the Foreign Agents Registration Act, the U.S. Department of Justice has a few options to limit the decision’s impact on enforcement, say attorneys at MoFo.

  • Series

    Playing Dungeons & Dragons Makes Me A Better Lawyer

    Author Photo

    Playing Dungeons & Dragons – a tabletop role-playing game – helped pave the way for my legal career by providing me with foundational skills such as persuasion and team building, says Derrick Carman at Robins Kaplan.

  • Unpacking Executive Privilege, Contempt In Recent Cases

    Author Photo

    The U.S. House of Representatives’ recent move to hold Attorney General Merrick Garland in contempt of Congress is the latest example in a growing trend of executive privilege disputes, and serves as a warning to private citizens and corporate leaders who are in communication with the president, says Kristina Moore at Womble Bond.

Want to publish in Law360?


Submit an idea

Have a news tip?


Contact us here
Hello! I'm Law360's automated support bot.

How can I help you today?

For example, you can type:
  • I forgot my password
  • I took a free trial but didn't get a verification email
  • How do I sign up for a newsletter?
Ask a question!