SEC Loses In High Profile Trial
Earlier this month, the SEC secured a huge win in SEC v. Wily, but on the same day the SEC was handed a crushing defeat in a bigger case, SEC v. Graham. Furthermore, a jury in Manhattan on Friday returned a verdict against the SEC and in favor of the three defendants in SEC v. […]
SEC Brings Suit Against Unregistered Broker Dealer
On May 15, the SEC filed a complaint against Behrooz Sarafraz in California federal court, alleging that Sarafraz violated federal securities laws by acting as an unregistered broker dealer, selling stock without a license. The SEC alleges that between February 2002 and April 2010 Sarafraz engaged in the offer and sale of oil and gas […]
SEC Denies Enforcement Action For Failure To Timely File Claim
The SEC recently denied a whistleblower claimant a Commission enforcement action award because the claimant did not file the award claim with the SEC’s Office of the Whistleblower timely. The Securities Exchange Act requires whistleblowers to file award claims within ninety calendar days of a Notice of Covered Action, which is a notice posted by […]
Oil And Gas Firm Merger Hampered By Class Claims And Conflicted Financial Advisers
Plaintiffs in a new class-action suit claim that the financial advisers hired to oversee a proposed merger of oil and gas companies Forest Oil and Sabine Oil & Gas did not have the best interests of shareholders in mind when approving the merger. The suit was filed by Randall Edwards against Forest Oil, seven of […]
Michael Steinberg Sentenced To 3.5 Years For Insider Trading
A Manhattan federal judge recently sentenced Michael Steinberg to 3.5 years in prison, three years of supervised released, the payment of a $2 million fine, and the forfeiture of over $365,000 for insider trading. Steinberg was convicted of four counts of securities fraud and one count of conspiracy to commit securities fraud after trading on […]
SEC Warns About Marijuana Related Investments
The SEC issued an investor alert warning potential investors of possible scams pertaining to marijuana-related investments, pointing out that fraudsters will often use the latest growth industries to entice potential investors with promises of high returns. The SEC noted that “[f]or marijuana-related companies that are not required to report with the SEC, investors may have […]
SEC Warns About Investing In Bitcoin
Bitcoin is in the news again as the SEC issued an Investor Alert earlier this month in order to warn potential investors of the risks of investing in Bitcoin and other types of virtual currencies. The SEC notes that Bitcoin is a decentralized, peer-to-peer virtual currency that can be exchanged for traditional currencies or used […]
FINRA Fines Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC
FINRA announced recently that it fined Morgan Stanley Smith Barney LLC $5 million for supervisory failures pertaining to the solicitation of retail customers to invest in IPOs, such as Facebook and Yelp, without satisfactory procedures and training to ensure that its sales staff distinguished between indications of interest and conditional offers in their solicitations. Indications […]
Wylys Used Offshore Trusts To Conceal Trades
This week a jury found that the Wyly brothers, Samuel and Charles, utilized a network of offshore trusts to illegally conceal their stock holdings and avoid trade limitations, meaning that Samuel and his brother’s estate may be liable for as much as $550 million. The SEC alleged that the Wylys, who founded Michaels Stores Inc., […]
Oppenheimer Conceals Evidence In Fraud Case
A couple from Long Island who lost over $5 million in a scheme perpetrated by Mark C. Hotton, at stock broker who worked for Oppenheimer and Company. Mr. Hotton became infamous after he defrauded producers of the Broadway play “Rebecca” by collecting commissions and fees for organizing financing with an investor that never existed. He […]