On December 12, the Securities and Exchange Commission charged a subsidiary of GlaxoSmithKline with violations of Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5 thereunder in connection with the company’s stock buybacks between November 2006 and April 2009.

On December 12, the Securities and Exchange Commission charged a subsidiary of GlaxoSmithKline with violations of Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and Rule 10b-5 thereunder in connection with the company’s stock buybacks between November 2006 and April 2009. Defendant Steifel Laboratories, Inc. (Steifel Labs) was a Florida family-owned dermatology products manufacturer when GlaxoSmithKline purchased the company in 2009. The SEC claims that Steifel Labs and its former CEO Charles Steifel defrauded shareholders of millions of dollars by using artificially low valuations of stock prices for the buybacks. The SEC also charged Charles Steifel with aiding and abetting Steifel Labs in its Section 10(b) and Rule 10b-5 violations.