Episode 286 -- Matt Stankiewicz on the Ripple Decision and Celsius CEO Indictment
Blue Sky Laws: Defending State-Level Securities Violations
The Justice Insiders: The Administrative State is Not Your Friend - A Conversation with Professor Richard Epstein
Four Decision Points in SEC Securities Investigations
Crypto Enforcement Is Here, and Always Has Been
Cryptocurrency: The Regulator’s Perspective
Investment Management Roundtable Discussion – Regulatory and Enforcement Update
Several recent lawsuits, and comments by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) and Federal Trade Commission (“FTC”), underscore the increasing litigation and regulatory scrutiny concerning the use of artificial...more
On September 27th, 2023, the SEC brought charges against six officers, directors and major shareholders of public companies for repeated failures to make timely filings pursuant to Section 13 and Section 16 of the Securities...more
Summary - A recent ruling on a motion to dismiss in a shareholder putative class action, brought by an investor against software company Pegasystems (Pega) in the District of Massachusetts, should give legal leaders and...more
On June 1, 2023, the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit affirmed the grant of summary judgment dismissing claims under Sections 14(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 against a financial company and...more
Delaware Chancery Court Dismisses Cigna Derivative Suit Over Failed Anthem Merger; The PCAOB Sanctions Former KPMG Vice Chair Of Audit For Failure To Supervise Senior Members Of KPMG's Audit Practice; Ninth Circuit Affirms...more
Delaware Court of Chancery Declines to Dismiss Investment Firm from Stockholder Derivative Suit; Delaware Chancery Court Dismisses Majority of Claims Alleging that California Biotech Firm Profited from Nonpublic Information...more
Delaware Federal Court Dismisses Shareholder Derivative Suit Concerning Lack of Board Diversity; California Federal Court Dismisses Shareholder Class Action Against Sorrento Therapeutics Regarding COVID-19 Treatment; Delaware...more
Last week, yet another federal court dismissed a shareholder derivative suit that claimed a company had failed to diversify its corporate leadership team. Shareholders had alleged that Opko Health Inc., a Miami-based medical...more
Northern District of California Kicks Shareholder Derivative Suit Against Alphabet, Inc. For Failing to Allege Demand Futility; Rare Securities “Holder’s Claim” Trial Results in Jury Verdict for Defendants; Delaware Court of...more
In First Solar Inc. v. National Union Fire Insurance Company of Pittsburgh, the Delaware Superior Court held there was no coverage for a class action brought by the individuals who opted out of a prior class action that had...more
On July 21, 2021, the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York held that the whistleblower protections established in SOX are not restricted to employee whistleblowers, but also extend to shareholders. SEC...more
Delaware Court of Chancery Awards Attorneys’ Fees After Gilead’s “Glaringly Egregious” Litigation Conduct; S.D.N.Y Grants Plaintiffs’ Partial Summary Judgment in Securities Class Action Against Perrigo; SPAC Investors Launch...more
SCOTUS Vacates Class Certification In Suit Against Goldman Sachs And Clarifies Appropriate Scope Of Price Impact Evidence; Stockholders Strike $110 Million Settlement In Suit Alleging Breaches Of Fiduciary Duties By Former...more
The Situation: A number of shareholder derivative lawsuits in federal court have been filed seeking to hold directors and officers of major companies accountable for alleged failures to uphold their companies' stated...more
Former Theranos CEO Denied Attorney-Client Privilege Over Communications with Company Attorneys; District of Massachusetts Allows Putative Securities Class Action to Proceed Against OvaScience Investors; Delaware Chancery...more
Federal Reserve Hints at Government-Backed Cryptocurrency; Third Circuit Affirms Dismissal of Securities Fraud Class Action Against Shutterfly Inc. Regarding Allegedly Misleading Financial Projections; Ninth Circuit Holds...more
Section 25400(d) of the California Corporations Code declares it is unlawful for any person, directly or indirectly, in this state...more
In a prior alert, we noted that a number of shareholder lawsuits were brought during 2020 in which large corporations and their directors were accused of fiduciary breaches and securities law violations tied to the alleged...more
SEC’s Disgorgement Authority Expanded Under National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2021; Delaware Court of Chancery Rejects Derivative Claim Based On Deficient Anti-Money Laundering Compliance Efforts: “Bad...more
Ninth Circuit Holds Loss Causation May Be Predicated on Information Potentially Available Under Freedom of Information Act; D.C. Circuit Upholds FINRA’s Permanent Ban of Broker Accused of Misconduct After Finding SCOTUS...more
California Federal Court Denies Motion to Dismiss Securities Class Action Arising from Uber’s IPO; S.D.N.Y. Dismisses Ponzi Scheme Action Against HSBC Hong Kong for Lack of Personal Jurisdiction; Delaware Court of Chancery...more
Yesterday's post concerned a recent ruling by U.S. District Court Judge Phyllis J. Hamilton concerning whether a plaintiff's purchase of a cryptocurrency was subject to qualification as an "issuer transaction" under the...more
Bankruptcy plans often include provisions releasing debtors and their officers and directors from certain potential liability. In Zardinovsky v. Arctic Glacier Income Fund, No. 17-2522 (3d Cir. Aug. 20, 2018), the United...more
Directors and officers (D&Os) of troubled companies should be highly sensitive to D&O insurance policies with Prior Act Exclusion. While policies with such exclusion may be cheaper, a recent decision by the U.S. Court of...more
Shareholders have accused Under Armour of “concealing the impact” of Sports Authority’s bankruptcy from investors in order to artificially inflate its stock price. The suit comes on the heels of a disastrous Q4 for UA, in...more