White Collar

  • January 14, 2025

    OCC Fines Ex-Wells Fargo Execs $18.5M For Sales Practices

    The Office of the Comptroller of the Currency said Tuesday that it has fined three former Wells Fargo executives a total of $18.5 million for their alleged roles in the banking giant's fake accounts scandal, capping off contested enforcement proceedings against them.

  • January 14, 2025

    Navy Capital Fund Firm Settles SEC's AML Allegations

    Navy Capital Green Management LLC on Tuesday agreed to pay $150,000 to settle allegations from the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission that the investment adviser made misrepresentations to investors about its anti-money laundering due diligence practices.

  • January 14, 2025

    Cannabis Reformers Split After DEA Judge Cancels Hearings

    The cannabis legal and business world was divided Tuesday after a U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration judge hit pause on widely anticipated and historic public hearings on the merits of a proposal to loosen federal restrictions on marijuana.

  • January 14, 2025

    DA Says Trump's Appeals To Intervene In NY Case Now 'Moot'

    Counsel for the Manhattan district attorney urged both a federal and a state appeals court to toss out Donald Trump's lingering invitations to intervene in his hush money case now that he's been sentenced, arguing there's no need for a "bizarre mechanism" when Trump can appeal normally.

  • January 14, 2025

    Frank Exec Wants Fraudster Comparisons Blocked At Trial

    The founder of student financial aid startup Frank has asked a Manhattan federal judge to block prosecutors from comparing her to well-known convicted fraudsters at her upcoming trial on charges that she tricked JPMorgan Chase & Co. into buying her company for $175 million.

  • January 14, 2025

    Combs Wants Full Access To Sex Tapes As Trial Nears

    Sean "Diddy" Combs said Tuesday that New York federal prosecutors are trampling on his trial preparation rights by limiting access to exculpatory video evidence that supposedly depicts "clearly consensual sex among willing adults" rather than sex-trafficking.

  • January 14, 2025

    SEC Sues Elon Musk Over Late Twitter Buy-Up Disclosure

    Elon Musk violated securities laws by failing to timely disclose his initial buy-up of Twitter stock ahead of his $44 billion acquisition of the company, allowing him to purchase shares at artificially low prices, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission alleged in a D.C. federal lawsuit filed Tuesday.

  • January 14, 2025

    Fla. Judge Won't Toss CFTC Suit Over $283M Trading Scheme

    A Florida federal judge on Tuesday declined to dismiss the Commodity Futures Trading Commission's claims accusing an agent of financial firm Algo FX Capital Advisor LLC of helping The Traders Domain orchestrate a $283 million commodity transactions scheme.

  • January 14, 2025

    Hytera Asks Justices To Check Whether DTSA Applies Abroad

    China-based Hytera Communications Corp. Ltd., which lost a trade secrets trial resulting in a $764 million jury award for Motorola Solutions that has since been reduced, has asked the U.S. Supreme Court to review whether the Defend Trade Secrets Act of 2016 can apply extraterritorially.

  • January 14, 2025

    Nadine Menendez Trial Might Be Longer Than Ex-Senator's

    Prosecutors and attorneys for Nadine Menendez told a Manhattan federal judge that her trial might last longer than that of her husband, former U.S. Sen. Robert Menendez, with the parties still at odds over stipulations about evidence.

  • January 14, 2025

    Both Michigan US Attys Resign Ahead Of Inauguration

    Michigan's U.S. attorneys, Dawn Ison in the Eastern District and Mark Totten in the Western District, announced their departures this week ahead of President-elect Donald Trump's inauguration.

  • January 14, 2025

    Justices Suggest 7th Circ. Revisit False Statement Decision

    Several U.S. Supreme Court justices seemed ready Tuesday to ask the Seventh Circuit to review a former Chicago alderman's conviction for lying about money he borrowed from a now-shuttered bank under a narrower standard, but the justices appeared skeptical that he would beat the case even with a fresh look.

  • January 14, 2025

    Ex-Cognizant Execs Seek Update On Elusive Gov't Witness

    A vital prosecution witness whose unavailability delayed the highly anticipated 2023 trial of two former Cognizant Technology Solutions Corp. executives on foreign bribery charges in New Jersey federal court might again be missing in action as the new trial date of March 3 approaches, according to court filings.

  • January 14, 2025

    Steptoe Hires A&O Shearman Political Law Leader In DC

    Steptoe LLP has hired the former head of A&O Shearman's political law group, who is joining the team in Washington, D.C., as a partner to continue her practice focused on a range of white collar investigations and political law issues, the firm announced Tuesday.

  • January 14, 2025

    Allred Seeks To Ax 'Absurd' Defamation Suit Over Diddy Case

    High-profile women's rights litigator Gloria Allred and her client have fired back at Sean "Diddy" Combs' former head of security, calling his defamation claims arising from the rape suit they filed against him and the embattled music mogul "absurd" and worthy of sanctions.

  • January 14, 2025

    Ex-NC Assistant AG To Co-Lead WilmerHale State AGs Group

    WilmerHale has tapped the former first assistant attorney general and general counsel to former North Carolina attorney general Josh Stein as co-leader of its state attorneys general practice, the firm announced Monday.

  • January 14, 2025

    Feds Ask 2 Years For Ex-Pol On Tax, Pandemic Aid Charges

    A former Massachusetts state senator should spend two years in prison after being convicted of illegally obtaining unemployment assistance and filing a false tax return, the federal government argued, citing the "greed" at the heart of the politician's conduct.

  • January 13, 2025

    Special Counsel Slams Biden's Critique Of Son's Prosecution

    The special counsel who oversaw the investigation into Hunter Biden, which was wiped out by a presidential pardon, released a report published Monday criticizing President Joe Biden's "baseless accusations" that his son was "selectively" prosecuted and warning that such comments threaten "the integrity of the justice system as a whole."

  • January 13, 2025

    Quinn Emanuel Scoops Up SDNY Securities Fraud Chief

    Quinn Emanuel Urquhart & Sullivan LLP announced Monday that it has hired the former chief of the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York's securities and commodities fraud task force as a partner in its Manhattan office.

  • January 13, 2025

    Ace Gallery Founder Gets 2 Years In Prison For Embezzlement

    A California federal judge on Monday sentenced art dealer Douglas Chrismas, who founded the internationally renowned Ace Gallery, to two years in prison for embezzling hundreds of thousands of dollars from the bankruptcy estate of the shuttered Los Angeles art gallery.

  • January 13, 2025

    On Cross, Madigan Says He Merely Helped Job-Seekers

    Former Illinois House Speaker Michael Madigan distanced himself Monday from political allies who prosecutors say bribed him for jobs and other benefits, saying his recommendations were just that, and that he thought he was effective in shutting down a former alderman's quid pro quo suggestion.

  • January 13, 2025

    Feds Say Par Funding Fraud Caused $404M In Losses

    Prosecutors and defense attorneys spent hours in a marathon hearing Monday trying to convince a Pennsylvania judge of how much financial damage they thought the principals of the Par Funding merchant lending business did by allegedly fleecing investors, with the government pushing for a $404 million figure.

  • January 13, 2025

    NYDFS Launches Staff Exchange With Bank Of England

    The New York Department of Financial Services on Monday launched an international secondment program to allow the department to exchange staff with other regulators, starting with a digital assets-focused exchange with the Bank of England next month.

  • January 13, 2025

    Bannon Must Explain Atty Swap As NY Wall Fraud Trial Looms

    A New York state judge on Monday ordered Steve Bannon to appear in court to explain why he switched counsel a month before he faces trial on charges of defrauding donors to a fundraiser to build a U.S. southern border wall.

  • January 13, 2025

    Amid Claims Of Agency Bias, DEA Judge Nixes Pot Hearings

    A Drug Enforcement Administration tribunal on Monday canceled planned hearings on the merits of a proposal to loosen federal restrictions on marijuana so that pro-rescheduling parties can bring their allegations of agency bias straight to the DEA's administrator.

Expert Analysis

  • 3 Presidential Privilege Questions After Trump Ruling

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    The U.S. Supreme Court's recent decision in Trump v. U.S., carving out a new evidentiary privilege for presidents, leaves unanswered several key questions concerning whether this new privilege is waivable or subject to various exceptions, says Jeremy Bates at Frankfurt Kurnit.

  • Crypto Gatekeepers May Be The Next Front Of Enforcement

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    Lawyers and other professionals who advise cryptocurrency companies should beware regulators' increasing focus on gatekeeper accountability, and should take several measures to fulfill their ethical and legal obligations, including implementing a robust vetting mechanism when representing crypto clients, say Temidayo Aganga-Williams and Xinchen Li at Selendy Gay.

  • Implementing Proposed AML Rules May Take More Guidance

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    Two recent rules proposed by financial regulators would modernize requirements for programs aimed at countering money laundering and terrorist financing by centering more robust risk assessments, but financial institutions may need more specific guidance before they could confidently comply, say Meghann Donahue and Nikhil Gore at Covington.

  • Series

    Playing Golf Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Golf can positively affect your personal and professional life well beyond the final putt, and it’s helped enrich my legal practice by improving my ability to build lasting relationships, study and apply the rules, face adversity with grace, and maintain my mental and physical well-being, says Adam Kelly at Venable.

  • Perspectives

    2 High Court Rulings Boost Protections Against Gov't Reprisal

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    The U.S. Supreme Court’s recent decisions in Gonzalez v. Trevino and Chiaverini v. City of Napoleon significantly strengthen legal protections against retaliatory arrests and malicious prosecution, and establish clear precedents that promote accountability in law enforcement, say Corey Stoughton and Amanda Miner at Selendy Gay.

  • Law Firms Should Move From Reactive To Proactive Marketing

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    Most law firm marketing and business development teams operate in silos, leading to an ad hoc, reactive approach, but shifting to a culture of proactive planning — beginning with comprehensive campaigns — can help firms effectively execute their broader business strategy, says Paul Manuele at PR Manuele Consulting.

  • From Muppet Heads To OJ's Glove: How To Use Props At Trial

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    Demonstrative graphics have become so commonplace in the courtroom that jurors may start to find them boring, but attorneys can keep jurors engaged and improve their recall by effectively using physical props at trial, says Clint Townson at Townson Consulting.

  • Opinion

    The Big Issues A BigLaw Associates' Union Could Address

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    A BigLaw associates’ union could address a number of issues that have the potential to meaningfully improve working conditions, diversity and attorney well-being — from restructured billable hour requirements to origination credit allocation, return-to-office mandates and more, says Tara Rhoades at The Sanity Plea.

  • Opinion

    It's Time For A BigLaw Associates' Union

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    As BigLaw faces a steady stream of criticism about its employment policies and practices, an associates union could effect real change — and it could start with law students organizing around opposition to recent recruiting trends, says Tara Rhoades at The Sanity Plea.

  • Why DOJ's Whistleblower Program May Have Limited Impact

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    The U.S. Department of Justice’s new whistleblower pilot program aims to incentivize individuals to report corporate misconduct, but the program's effectiveness may be undercut by its differences from other federal agencies’ whistleblower programs and its interplay with other DOJ policies, say attorneys at Milbank.

  • How Justices Upended The Administrative Procedure Act

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    In its recent Loper Bright, Corner Post and Jarkesy 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

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    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

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    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

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    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

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    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.

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