Securities

  • December 18, 2024

    EY Accused Of Aiding Energy Firm's SPAC Fraud

    Big Four accounting firm EY faces a suit alleging that its "unqualified" audit opinions for a United Arab Emirates-based oil storage leasing company enabled the company to defraud investors in its $1 billion 2019 merger with a special purpose acquisition company.

  • December 18, 2024

    Insurance Co. Buyer Accuses Seller Of Fraud In Chancery Suit

    Alleging a "textbook case of fraud in the inducement and breach of fiduciary duty," a holding company that acquired Georgia-based Southern Trust Insurance Co. has sued the seller's principals, associates and their company in Delaware's Court of Chancery.

  • December 18, 2024

    The Biggest 1st Circ. Rulings Of 2024

    The nation's smallest federal circuit court in 2024 issued an opinion tackling the government of Mexico's efforts to hold U.S. firearms makers responsible for the flow of illegal arms across the southern border, determining the claims are not barred by a litigation shield, among other high-profile decisions.

  • December 17, 2024

    GOP Hill Leaders Pledge To Prioritize Crypto Bills Next Year

    Lawmakers told crypto industry participants Tuesday that they plan to keep digital assets top of mind in the coming legislative session by prioritizing bills on a regulatory structure for stablecoins and digital asset markets, as well as digging into allegations bank regulators have unfairly targeted crypto businesses.

  • December 17, 2024

    BDO Asks 2nd Circ. To Rethink AmTrust Investor Suit Ruling

    Auditing firm BDO USA LLP has asked the full Second Circuit to review an earlier decision that allowed a lawsuit brought by AmTrust Financial Services Inc. investors to move forward on claims that the auditor did a poor job reviewing the insurer's financial statements.

  • December 17, 2024

    CORRECTED: Ineligible Calif. Securities Atty Accused Of Tax Crimes

    A Southern California securities attorney currently ineligible to practice law has gone over five years without filing any personal federal income tax returns, the U.S. Department of Justice alleged in announcing a recently unsealed indictment against the lawyer on Tuesday.

  • December 17, 2024

    Del. Justices Won't Revive Investors' $2.4B EV SPAC Deal Suit

    The Delaware Supreme Court has declined to reinstate a proposed class action in the state's Chancery Court that accused a blank-check company of withholding key information from investors ahead of its $2.4 billion go-public deal with electric-vehicle maker Canoo Holdings Ltd.

  • December 17, 2024

    TelexFree Victims Seek Class Cert. Over Ponzi Losses

    Victims of the multibillion-dollar TelexFree Ponzi scheme have asked a federal judge to certify their class in their suit against the litigation's remaining defendants, including TelexFree insiders and Wells Fargo, arguing that cases arising from Ponzi schemes are the "very archetypes for class treatment."

  • December 17, 2024

    Broker, AML Chief Settle SEC Suspicious Activity Claims

    Broker-dealer SogoTrade Inc. and its former anti-money laundering compliance officer on Tuesday agreed to pay fines, and other terms, to settle U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission charges that they repeatedly failed to investigate suspicious customer activity or file related reports.

  • December 17, 2024

    SEC, CFTC Members Eye Crypto Coordination Under Trump

    Republican commissioners at the federal securities and futures regulators told crypto industry participants on Tuesday that they will urge their agencies to collaborate more closely on providing regulatory relief and clarity in the new year as they wait for lawmakers to get long-awaited crypto legislation across the finish line.

  • December 17, 2024

    Alcohol Co. Sued Over Biz Hangover After COVID Lockdowns

    Alcoholic beverage manufacturer MGP Ingredients Inc. has been hit with a proposed investor class action alleging the company misled the public about the continued success of its business following its exponential growth during the COVID-19 pandemic and related lockdowns.

  • December 17, 2024

    SEC Says Express Didn't Disclose $1M In Ex-CEO Perks

    Express Inc. failed to disclose nearly $1 million worth of perks and personal benefits to former CEO Tim Baxter, according to a settlement released Tuesday by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, which declined to levy a civil penalty against the fashion retailer in light of its cooperation and remediation.

  • December 17, 2024

    Hunton Adds Ex-Flagstar Atty To NYC Office

    Hunton Andrews Kurth LLP announced on Tuesday it has hired ex-Flagstar Bank senior vice president and associate general counsel Ian W. Sterling for its New York City office as a special counsel who specializes in structured finance and securitization.

  • December 17, 2024

    Drug Co. Investor Sues In Del. Over $140M Insider Windfall

    A pension fund investor in Cerevel Therapeutics Holdings Inc. has sued Bain Capital Investors LLC and other alleged insiders of the company in Delaware's Court of Chancery, accusing them of lining up a secondary offering in the biopharmaceutical venture before disclosure of its planned sale to AbbVie.

  • December 17, 2024

    Asset Manager Gets 2½ Years For Role In $1.2B PDVSA Scheme

    A Florida federal judge on Tuesday sentenced an asset manager who pled guilty to participating in a $1.2 billion scheme to embezzle money from Venezuela's state-owned oil company to 2½ years in prison.

  • December 17, 2024

    Express Inc.'s Post-Sale Ch. 11 Liquidation Plan Approved

    A Delaware bankruptcy judge on Tuesday confirmed the Chapter 11 liquidation plan for the estate of clothing retailer Express Inc., after the debtor sold the business this summer for $174 million.

  • December 16, 2024

    Circuit-By-Circuit Guide To 2024's Most Memorable Moments

    One judge said a litigant's position would cause "an effing nightmare," and another decried the legal community's silence amid "illegitimate aspersions." Public officials literally trashed one court's opinion, and fateful rulings dealt with controversial politicians, social media and decades of environmental policy. Those were just a few appellate highlights in 2024, a year teeming with memorable moments both substantive and sensational.

  • December 16, 2024

    BNY Scores Exit In Mutual Fund Conflict Of Interest Suit

    A Pennsylvania federal magistrate judge on Monday granted The Bank of New York Mellon's bid to toss a proposed class action claiming that it failed to disclose conflicts of interest when funneling client assets into mutual funds and other investment vehicles that favored the bank, ruling that the claims are preempted by the Securities Litigation Uniform Standards Act.

  • December 16, 2024

    Ginkgo Bioworks Investors Get Final OK Of $17.8M Settlement

    Investors in biotech company Ginkgo Bioworks Holdings Inc. have gotten final approval for their $17.75 million deal to end proposed class action claims that the company and its leaders distorted Ginkgo's finances, mischaracterizing certain related party deals, to garner shareholder support for its merger with a special purpose acquisition company.

  • December 16, 2024

    Split SEC Will Require Certain Filings Be Made Electronically

    A split U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission on Monday adopted rule amendments that require certain filings be made electronically, with Chair Gary Gensler saying the changes will streamline the commission's filing process.

  • December 16, 2024

    Texas Bitcoin Mining Enterprise's Investors Accuse It Of Fraud

    Founders of a Texas-based bitcoin mining company are being accused of fraud by several investors in a new lawsuit claiming they attempted to conceal the sale of the company's operational facilities to a competitor, which led to the company's filing for bankruptcy earlier this year.

  • December 16, 2024

    'Plans Do Matter,' Tempur Sealy Says In Final Merger Hearing

    Tempur Sealy made its final push Monday in support of its $4 billion planned Mattress Firm purchase, telling a judge during closing arguments that the Federal Trade Commission hadn't shown that the company planned to deviate from its intent for Mattress Firm to remain autonomous. 

  • December 16, 2024

    Judge OKs Par Funding Receiver's Plan To Distribute $110M

    A Florida federal judge on Monday approved a distribution plan by the receiver for Par Funding and authorized the first distribution of more than $110 million that the receiver has collected for the investors who were defrauded in a Ponzi scheme that raised nearly a half-billion dollars.

  • December 16, 2024

    Chinese Fintech 9F Partially Beats Investors' IPO Suit

    A New Jersey federal judge has partially dismissed a securities fraud class action against 9F Inc. that accused the Chinese financial technology company of hiding its financial woes and not disclosing an "illegal arrangement" that investors said it had with an insurance carrier.

  • December 16, 2024

    Global Payments' $3.6M Investor Deal Gets Judge's Final OK

    Investors in Atlanta-based Global Payments Inc. have gotten final approval for a $3.6 million deal ending claims the company harmed shareholders by allegedly misleading consumers into signing up for a program with undisclosed fees.

Expert Analysis

  • Nvidia Supreme Court Case May Not Make Big Splash

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    The skeptical tenor of the justices' questioning at oral argument in Nvidia v. Ohman Fonder suggests that the case is unlikely to alter the motion to dismiss pleading standard in securities class actions, as some had feared, say attorneys at WilmerHale.

  • Series

    Circus Arts Make Me A Better Lawyer

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    Performing circus arts has strengthened my ability to be more thoughtful, confident and grounded, all of which has enhanced my legal practice and allowed me to serve clients in a more meaningful way, says Bailey McGowan at Stinson.

  • How D&O Coverage Can Aid Against Increased AI Scrutiny

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    The recent increase in regulatory enforcement and securities class actions stemming from corporate use of artificial intelligence should prompt companies to ensure that their directors and officers liability insurance coverage is appropriately tailored to AI-related risks, say attorneys at Reed Smith.

  • Crypto Cos. Add New Play In Their Offense Against SEC

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    Consensys and Crypto.com have adopted a novel strategy of preempting U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission enforcement actions by moving to crypto-friendly Texas and filing declaratory lawsuits challenging the SEC's jurisdiction to regulate crypto-assets — an aggressive approach that may pay off, say attorneys at Herrick Feinstein.

  • 3 Ways To Train Junior Lawyers In 30 Minutes Or Less

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    Today’s junior lawyers are experiencing a skills gap due to pandemic-era disruptions, but firms can help bring them up to speed by offering high-impact skill building content in bite-sized, interactive training sessions, say Stacey Schwartz at Katten, Diane Costigan at Winston & Strawn and Lauren Tierney at Freshfields.

  • How To Safely Leverage AI In The Digital Assets Industry

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    Digital asset businesses that use or plan to implement artificial intelligence should assess their risk management frameworks to ensure that AI-related business areas, including customer support and fraud detection, are in compliance with applicable laws and regulatory guidance from the last year, say attorneys at Winston & Strawn.

  • $3B TD Bank AML Settlement Is A Wake-Up Call For All Banks

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    TD Bank’s historic settlement over anti-money laundering violations, resulting in over $3 billion in penalties, reminds banks of all shapes and sizes why they need to take financial crime compliance seriously, and highlights three areas that may be especially vulnerable to enforcement, says Jack Harrington at Bradley Arant.

  • What Trump Presidency May Mean For Climate Reporting

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    While the Trump administration will likely take a hands-off approach to climate-related disclosures and rescind regulations promulgated under the Biden administration, state and international ESG laws mean the private sector may not reverse course on such disclosures, say attorneys at Seyfarth.

  • SEC Action Indicates Continued Focus On ESG Disclosures

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    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's recently settled enforcement action against Invesco Advisers provides a road map for how regulatory agencies will continue to focus on ESG-related disclosures going forward, and underscores a focus on greenwashing, say attorneys at V&E.

  • 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.

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