Bass, Berry & Sims attorney Chris Lazarini outlined the factors courts must consider in determining whether the fees an adviser charges a mutual fund are excessive and in violation of the Investment Company Act. All the...more
5/31/2020
/ Appeals ,
Board of Directors ,
Excessive Fees ,
Gartenberg Factors ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Company Act of 1940 ,
Mutual Funds ,
Section 36(b) ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Shareholders ,
Summary Judgment
Bass, Berry & Sims attorney Chris Lazarini outlined a case exploring the economic loss rule. The court found that a party suffering only an economic loss from the breach of an express or implied contractual duty may not...more
Bass, Berry & Sims attorney Chris Lazarini examined a case in which a group of shareholders alleged the company and two individual defendants breached their fiduciary duties to shareholders, and an investment bank aided and...more
11/12/2019
/ Aiding and Abetting ,
Appeals ,
Board of Directors ,
Breach of Duty ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Genuine Issue of Material Fact ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Banks ,
Mergers ,
Motion for Summary Judgment ,
Shareholder Litigation ,
Shareholders
Bass, Berry & Sims attorney Chris Lazarini provided insight on a case in which the defendant appealed a verdict claiming the court abused its discretion and issued a “highly excessive” judgment when it ordered him to disgorge...more
3/12/2019
/ Abuse of Discretion ,
Appeals ,
Disgorgement ,
Final Judgment ,
Injunctive Relief ,
Jury Verdicts ,
Misrepresentation ,
Permanent Injunctions ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Rule 10(b) ,
Scienter ,
Section 17(a) ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Exchange Act
Bass, Berry & Sims attorney Chris Lazarini discussed a case involving the court’s application of the plain error doctrine to reverse and remand a trial court’s order vacating a default judgment. The plain error doctrine is...more
Bass, Berry & Sims attorney Chris Lazarini analyzed a defendant’s second appeal to vacate an insider trading conviction. On the direct appeal, the individual raised multiple evidentiary issues, but did not challenge the jury...more
Bass, Berry & Sims attorney Chris Lazarini discussed a case centered around three IRA accounts and the duty that UBS had to the beneficiary following the death of the client/IRA account holder. Prior to the client’s death,...more
11/16/2018
/ Appeals ,
Asset Management ,
Beneficiaries ,
Breach of Contract ,
Consumer Protection Act ,
Counterclaims ,
De Novo Standard of Review ,
Due Care ,
Duty of Care ,
Emotional Distress Damages ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Financial Institutions ,
Fund Distribution ,
Individual Retirement Account (IRA) ,
Interpleaders ,
Judgment on the Pleadings ,
Request For Information ,
Reversal ,
Trustees
Bass, Berry & Sims attorney Chris Lazarini examined further developments in a case involving a former UBS investment advisor’s attempt to prevent the company from collecting on promissory notes the advisor owed to UBS upon...more
10/8/2018
/ Actual Malice ,
Appeals ,
Asset Freeze ,
Asset Transfer ,
Attorney's Fees ,
Creditors ,
De Novo Standard of Review ,
Debtors ,
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ,
Former Employee ,
Fraudulent Transfers ,
Insolvency ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Companies ,
Limited Liability Company (LLC) ,
Operating Agreements ,
Promissory Notes ,
Punitive Damages ,
Spouses ,
Summary Judgment ,
Venue ,
Void Contracts
Bass, Berry & Sims attorney Chris Lazarini analyzed a case in which a former investment advisor at UBS sought to prevent the company from collecting on promissory notes the advisor owed to UBS upon his departure. After the...more
9/4/2018
/ Appeals ,
Arbitration ,
Arbitration Awards ,
Asset Freeze ,
Attorney's Fees ,
Creditors ,
De Novo Standard of Review ,
Debtors ,
Former Employee ,
Fraud ,
Fraudulent Transfers ,
Good Faith ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Management ,
Motion for Summary Judgment ,
Operating Agreements ,
Promissory Notes ,
Punitive Damages ,
Transfer of Assets
Bass, Berry & Sims attorney Chris Lazarini examined a case of alleged breach of trust and breach of fiduciary duty against a bank acting as the indenture trustee related to a foreclosure action on defaulted mortgage revenue...more
4/3/2018
/ Appeals ,
Banks ,
Bondholders ,
Bonds ,
Breach of Duty ,
Breach of Trust ,
Cause of Action Accrual ,
De Novo Standard of Review ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Foreclosure ,
Indenture Trustee ,
Mortgages ,
Notice of Default ,
Statute of Limitations ,
Summary Judgment ,
Time-Barred Claims
Bass, Berry & Sims attorney Chris Lazarini commented on a case in which a defendant – convicted in a criminal proceeding of knowingly and willfully making false statements to investors, regulators, an outside accountant and...more
2/28/2018
/ Accountants ,
Acquisitions ,
Acquittals ,
Appeals ,
Biofuel ,
Criminal Procedure ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Evidence ,
False Statements ,
Federal Rules of Criminal Procedure ,
Government Agencies ,
Inference ,
Investors ,
Jury Verdicts ,
Mens Rea ,
Misrepresentation ,
Regulatory Agencies ,
Restitution ,
Witness
Bass, Berry & Sims attorney Chris Lazarini provided insight on a case in which a former broker sought to overturn a jury verdict finding him guilty of securities fraud, obstruction of justice and wire fraud by arguing, among...more
2/26/2018
/ Abuse of Discretion ,
Appeals ,
Brokers ,
Determination on Remand ,
Evidentiary Hearings ,
False Statements ,
FBI ,
Federal Rules of Evidence ,
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ,
Former Employee ,
Impeachment ,
Influencers ,
Juror ,
Obstruction of Justice ,
Prejudice ,
Reversal ,
Securities Fraud ,
Stocks ,
Wire Fraud
Bass, Berry & Sims attorney Chris Lazarini examined a case in which the New York Court of Appeals provided guidance on Rule 908 of the New York Civil Practice Law and Rules, deciding that Rule 908 requires sending notice of a...more
Bass, Berry & Sims attorney Chris Lazarini discussed a case involving an arbitration award and bankruptcy filing. The court ruled that where a bankruptcy action has been closed, the bankruptcy trustee's exclusive authority to...more
2/2/2018
/ Appeals ,
Arbitration ,
Bankruptcy Code ,
Brokers ,
Commercial Bankruptcy ,
Creditors ,
Equitable Tolling ,
Fraudulent Transfers ,
Jurisdiction ,
Standing ,
Time-Barred Claims ,
Trustees ,
UFTA ,
Unsecured Debt
Bass, Berry & Sims attorney Chris Lazarini analyzed a case in which defendant Wilson-Davis, a securities firm, sought to enjoin an arbitration brought against it alleging that the firm's failure to supervise its agent caused...more
2/1/2018
/ Abuse of Discretion ,
Appeals ,
Arbitration ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ,
Financial Institutions ,
Mandatory Arbitration ,
Motion To Enjoin ,
Permanent Injunctions ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Securities Litigation ,
Supervision
Bass, Berry & Sims attorney Chris Lazarini discussed a case involving the repercussions of the multi-billion dollar Ponzi scheme of Thomas Petters related to the management of the Stewardship Credit Arbitrage Fund, LLC...more
11/13/2017
/ Abuse of Discretion ,
Appeals ,
Asset Freeze ,
Creditors ,
False Statements ,
Investors ,
Loans ,
Motion to Amend ,
Ponzi Scheme ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Fraud ,
Securities Litigation ,
Shareholder Distributions ,
Stipulations
Bass, Berry & Sims attorney Chris Lazarini commented on a case in which a court took the unusual step of remanding a case to the arbitration panel to explain the rationale behind its award. The Court made the decision because...more
Bass, Berry & Sims attorney Chris Lazarini examined a case filed by Morgan Stanley against Defendant in a FINRA arbitration over an un-paid promissory note. The Defendant answered without asserting counterclaims, but later...more
9/28/2017
/ Appeals ,
Arbitration ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Dismissals ,
Dodd-Frank ,
False Claims Act (FCA) ,
Injunctive Relief ,
Res Judicata ,
State Law Claims ,
Waivers ,
Wrongful Termination
Bass, Berry & Sims attorney Chris Lazarini provided insight on a lawsuit involving a former broker of Wells Fargo who sued the firm in state court for fraud and personal injury when the company initiated a foreclosure action...more
Bass, Berry & Sims attorney Chris Lazarini examined a case in which an indigent defendant sought to obtain Criminal Justice Act (CJA) funds to retain an expert. The court denied the defendant access to CJA funds because the...more
8/4/2017
/ Abuse of Discretion ,
Appeals ,
Criminal Convictions ,
Criminal Defense ,
Criminal Justice Act ,
Expert Witness ,
Hackers ,
Ponzi Scheme ,
Reaffirmation ,
Sentencing Factors ,
Unfair Prejudice ,
Wire Fraud
Bass, Berry & Sims attorney Chris Lazarini analyzed a case in which plaintiff claimed breach of contract when her investment advisor did not transfer funds in a timely manner. The trial court and court of appeals awarded...more
Bass, Berry & Sims attorney Chris Lazarini discussed a case in which the plaintiff, a former stockbroker, sued his employer after he was terminated claiming discrimination under the ADA and ADEA. Under these statutes and...more
6/12/2017
/ ADEA ,
Age Discrimination ,
Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) ,
Appeals ,
Brokers ,
Burden-Shifting ,
Dismissals ,
Hiring & Firing ,
Pretext ,
Reasonable Accommodation ,
Waivers
Bass, Berry & Sims attorney Chris Lazarini commented on a case in which a former commodities broker appealed a decision ordering him to pay restitution to his former firm which had made its customers whole after the broker's...more
Bass, Berry & Sims attorney Chris Lazarini analyzed the court's enforcement of an exculpatory clause in the context of a Trading Advisory Agreement. Where parties elect to include exculpatory clauses in their contracts, such...more
5/2/2017
/ Appeals ,
Breach of Contract ,
CFTC ,
Damages ,
Dismissals ,
Exculpatory Clauses ,
Fraud ,
Futures ,
Gross Negligence ,
Judicial Notice ,
Leave to Amend ,
Remand ,
Reversal ,
Trading Advisory Agreements (TAAs)
Bass, Berry & Sims attorney Chris Lazarini commented on a case in which the plaintiff claimed Merrill Lynch acted improperly in selling shares held as collateral for a loan when plaintiff had not defaulted on the loan. The...more
3/27/2017
/ Appeals ,
Collateral ,
Covenant of Good Faith and Fair Dealing ,
Default ,
Dismissals ,
Loan Agreements ,
Loans ,
Merrill Lynch ,
Motion to Amend ,
Sales of Securities ,
Stocks