On Thursday, June 27, the Supreme Court, in a 6-3 decision, held that the Seventh Amendment entitles a defendant to a jury trial in instances where the SEC seeks civil penalties against that defendant for alleged securities...more
7/3/2024
/ Administrative Authority ,
Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) ,
Administrative Proceedings ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Jury Trial ,
SCOTUS ,
SEC v Jarkesy ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Fraud ,
Securities Regulation ,
Seventh Amendment
On Friday, April 5, a California federal jury found a former Medivation executive liable for insider trading under the novel liability theory of “shadow trading,” following an eight-day trial and less than three hours of...more
4/17/2024
/ Confidential Information ,
Corporate Officers ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Insider Trading ,
Jury Trial ,
Jury Verdicts ,
Misappropriation ,
Pharmaceutical Industry ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Violations ,
Target Company
On April 2 and 3, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC or Commission) presented its annual SEC Speaks program in conjunction with PLI, where senior members of the Commission provided updates on the current...more
Employers should check their confidentiality and severance agreements for a common oversight that, for some, is becoming a costly error.
Recent enforcement activity by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) of Rule...more
1/23/2024
/ Compliance ,
Compliance Manuals ,
Confidentiality Agreements ,
Contract Terms ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Employee Handbooks ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Employment Contract ,
Enforcement Actions ,
IRS ,
Non-Disparagement Provisions ,
Rule 21F-17 ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Violations ,
Settlement Agreements ,
Severance Agreements ,
Whistleblower Protection Policies ,
Whistleblowers
The settlements announced by the SEC and CFTC on Monday are a continuation of the regulators’ focus on off-channel communications by employees of registered entities....more
8/11/2023
/ Books & Records ,
Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) ,
Broker-Dealer ,
CFTC ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) ,
Data Preservation ,
Data Retention ,
Electronic Communications ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Hedge Funds ,
Mobile Apps ,
Private Equity ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Exchange Act ,
Settlement ,
Swap Dealers
On Wednesday, March 1 the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced its first-ever prosecution of an individual for insider trading based on an executive’s use of 10b5-1 trading plans. Terren Peizer, the executive chairman of...more
3/8/2023
/ 10b5-1 Plans ,
Amended Regulation ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Form 8-K ,
Indictments ,
Insider Information ,
Insider Trading ,
Popular ,
Securities ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Fraud
On July 25, 2022, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC or the Commission) made headlines announcing insider trading charges against 10 individuals across four separate cases, signaling an increased and renewed focus on...more
On April 14, 2021, the U.S. Senate confirmed the nomination of Gary Gensler as the 33rd Chair of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC” or “Commission”). This change will bring forth a Democratic majority at the...more
4/16/2021
/ Biden Administration ,
CFTC ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Fraud ,
FSOC ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Special Purpose Acquisition Companies (SPACs)
On Oct. 8 and 9, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC” or “Commission”) presented its annual program, The SEC Speaks in 2020. The Commission touted its virtual enforcement results, particularly in Chairman...more
On August 14, 2020, the Department of Justice (the “DOJ”) issued its first Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (the “FCPA”) advisory opinion in almost six years....more
On June 22, 2020, the U.S. Supreme Court issued its highly anticipated decision in Liu v. Securities and Exchange Commission, which found that disgorgement awards that do not exceed a wrongdoer’s net profits (gross profits...more
7/2/2020
/ 15 U.S.C. § 78u(d)(5) ,
Administrative Authority ,
Business Expenses ,
Calculation of Damages ,
Corporate Misconduct ,
Disgorgement ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Equitable Relief ,
Kokesh v SEC ,
Lack of Authority ,
Liu v Securities and Exchange Commission ,
Net Profits ,
Remedies ,
SCOTUS ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
2017 marked the fortieth anniversary of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), and showed continued robust enforcement against both individuals and companies by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and the U.S. Securities...more
3/9/2018
/ Anti-Bribery ,
Anti-Corruption ,
Bribery ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Corruption ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Federal Pilot Programs ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Foreign Official ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
White Collar Crimes
On February 12, 2018, the Division of Enforcement of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) announced a new initiative to encourage advisers to self-report share class violations. Share class violations occur...more
The first half of 2017 has been eagerly anticipated following the record-setting year in 2016 for Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (“FCPA”) enforcement by both the U.S. Department of Justice (“DOJ”) and the U.S. Securities and...more
8/29/2017
/ Bribery ,
Compliance ,
Corruption ,
Deferred Prosecution Agreements ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Government Officials ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Trump Administration ,
White Collar Crimes
2016 was a record-setting year for Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (“FCPA”) enforcement, as both the U.S. Department of Justice (“DOJ”) and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) recovered well over $2 billion in...more
1/26/2017
/ Anti-Bribery ,
Anti-Corruption ,
Bribery ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Fraud ,
Money Laundering ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
White Collar Crimes
Appearing before the annual Securities Docket Conference in Washington, DC on October 13, Kara Novaco Brockmeyer, the Chief of the Securities and Exchange Commission’s FCPA Unit, laid out the Commission’s FCPA enforcement...more
The investigation and prosecution of tax evasion has, in the past decade, grown from a specialized subcategory of law enforcement into a first-tier policy concern for the international community. Financial institutions,...more
Despite a decline in enforcement actions by the Securities Exchange Commission (“SEC”) and the Department of Justice (“DOJ”), the first half of 2015 has continued to highlight the relevance and ever-evolving effects of the...more
10/14/2015
/ Aerospace ,
Africa ,
Angola ,
Anti-Bribery ,
Anti-Corruption ,
Anti-Money Laundering ,
Avon ,
BHP Billiton ,
Brazil ,
Bribery ,
China ,
Clean Companies Act ,
Compliance ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Investigations ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Deferred Prosecution Agreements ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Derivative Suit ,
DPA ,
Eli Lilly ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Federal Contractors ,
Federal Prosecutors ,
Fokker ,
Football ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Fraud ,
Goodyear ,
Hospitality Programs ,
India ,
Indictments ,
Medicaid ,
Medicare ,
Money Laundering ,
Olympics ,
PBSJ Corporation ,
PetroTiger ,
Popular ,
Public Utility ,
Racketeering ,
Russia ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Fraud ,
Serious Fraud Office (SFO) ,
Settlement ,
Soccer ,
Sports ,
State-Owned Enterprises ,
Subject Matter Jurisdiction ,
UK Bribery Act ,
Wal-Mart ,
Whistleblowers ,
White Collar Crimes ,
Wire Fraud ,
World Cup
Over the course of 2014, the Department of Justice (“DOJ”) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) have continued their aggressive enforcement of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (“FCPA”). This has led to critical...more
The first half of 2014 has seen several important developments in the enforcement of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (“FCPA”) as well as other anti-corruption laws worldwide. The FCPA has been in existence for more than 35...more