SEC Charges Nicolas Zanen and His Friend with Insider Trading
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced on October 9, 2015 that it has charged Nicolas Zanen, Vice President of Trading at a subsidiary of Cheniere Energy, Inc., and his college friend, Francis van Steenberge, with insider trading in… Read More
Equity Crowdfunding Approved – Going Public Attorney
Equity Crowdfunding was adopted pursuant to Title III of the Jumpstart Our Business Act (JOBS Act). The rule allows companies to raise up to $1 million every 12 months in a crowdfunding campaign using an online funding portal or registered broker-dealer.
SEC Issues Trading Suspension of Locan & American Power Corp
On October 30, 2015, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) announced the temporary suspension of trading in the securities of American Power Corp. (AMPW) and Locan, Inc. (LOCN). The SEC trading suspension commenced at 9:30 a.m. EDT on… Read More
SEC Wins Summary Judgment Against Allen Smith
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced on October 8, 2015 that Judge Paul Barbadoro of the United States District Court for the District of New Hampshire entered summary judgment in favor of the SEC on its claims… Read More
SEC Addresses Equity Crowdfunding – Going Public Attorney
On October 30, 2015, three years after The JOBS Act became law, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) will vote in an Open Meeting to consider whether to: adopt rules and forms related to the offer and sale… Read More
Court Enters Default Judgment Against James Erwin and Malom Group
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced on October 8, 2015 that the United States District Court for the District of Nevada entered default judgments against Las Vegas-based James Erwin and his corporate entity, Las Vegas-based Joint Venture… Read More
SEC Obtains Final Judgments Against Operators of a Ponzi Scheme
On October 8, 2015, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced that the Court entered final judgments on September 28, 2015, against Garfield Taylor, Jeffrey King, Garfield Taylor, Inc. (“GTI”), Gibraltar Asset Management Group, LLC (“Gibraltar”) and The… Read More
SEC Charges Oscar Wu With Settled Insider Trading
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on October 7, 2015 filed settled insider trading charges against Oscar Wu, a former portfolio manager at a New York-based investment adviser. The SEC claims that, during the course of his employment… Read More
Former Executives of OCZ Technology Group Charged with Fraud
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on October 6, 2015, charged two former top executives at OCZ Technology Group, Inc. for accounting failures at the now-bankrupt seller of computer memory storage and power supply devices. In a complaint filed in… Read More
SEC Charges Steve Chen With Fraud and Imposes Asset Freeze
On September 22, 2015, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed, under seal, fraud charges and, on September 28, obtained asset freezes against the operator of a worldwide pyramid scheme that falsely promised investors would profit from a… Read More
James Quay Found Guilty for Perjury and Fraud
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced on October 5, 2015 that on September 28, 2015, Judge Richard Story of the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia found James Quay guilty of criminal contempt… Read More
The SEC Charges Arizona Players with Embezzlement
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) charged five Arizona residents with embezzlement. Allegedly, these residents stole millions of dollars from investors to make car payments, buy clothes, and fund travel and entertainment at luxury resorts, casinos, and strip… Read More
Final Judgement Entered Against Amyot And Spencer Pharmaceutical
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced October 1, 2015 that on September 30, 2015, the United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts issued an order setting final judgments in an enforcement action filed in December 2012 against… Read More
Trade Secrets
On December 28, 2012, the Theft of Trade Secrets Clarification Act became law. The Act amends the Economic Espionage Act of 1996 (EEA) and expands the jurisdiction of federal courts in cases regarding the theft of trade secrets. The… Read More
Ranjan Mendonsa and Ammar Akbari Charged with Insider Trading
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced on October 1, 2015 that on September 28, 2015, the Honorable Haywood Gilliam of the United States District Court for the Northern District of California entered a final judgement against defendants Ranjan Mendonsa… Read More
Securities Lawyer 101 Blog Wins Third Place In Best Legal Blog Contest
Our readers have spoken. Securities Lawyer 101 written by Brenda Hamilton, a securities and going public attorney has won third place in overall winners in The Expert Institute’s Best Legal Blog Competition. From a field of more than 2,000 legal… Read More
SEC Charges Executives of ContinuityX Solutions with Fraud
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced that it charged two former executives of ContinuityX Solutions, Inc. with fabricating nearly all of the company’s revenue and enriching themselves in the process. Metamora, Illinois-based ContinuityX was a publicly traded… Read More
Charles Riel and REinvest LLC Charged with Securities Fraud
On September 29, 2015, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) charged a company and its manager with securities fraud of their investors by promising them outlandish “low risk” investment returns and then misusing the investors’ money to, among other… Read More
Lee Dana Weiss Charged with Self-Dealing and Failure to Disclose
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced on September 29, 2015 fraud charges against a registered investment adviser and its owner for allegedly participating in self-dealing and failing to communicate material facts to clients about conflicts of interest, use of… Read More
Jose Ramirez Charged by the SEC for Conducting Fraudulent Scheme
On September 29, 2015, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) charged Jose Ramirez, a former top broker at UBS Financial Services Incorporated of Puerto Rico (“UBSPR”), who made material misrepresentations and omissions and conducted a fraudulent scheme that… Read More
NYSE Amends Rules For The Release of Material News
Halts Before Open Under the amended NYSE Listed Company Manual, between 7:00 a.m. and the opening of trading, the NYSE can implement a regulatory halt if (i) the listed company has informed the NYSE staff that it intends… Read More
Five Florida Residents Charged by the SEC With Insider Trading
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on September 28, 2015 charged five Florida residents, including a lawyer and an accountant with insider trading before the acquisition of Pharmasset Inc. by Gilead Sciences Inc. The SEC filed a complaint claiming that attorneys Robert Spallina and… Read More
SEC Charges Roger Bliss With Obstruction of Justice
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced on September 2, 2015 that an alleged investment club fraudster whose assets were frozen in an SEC enforcement action earlier this year has now been criminally charged by a grand jury for… Read More
SEC Charges Trinity Capital Corporation with Fraud
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced on September 28, 2015 that Trinity Capital Corporation and its wholly-owned subsidiary, Los Alamos National Bank, have agreed to pay $1.5 million to settle accounting fraud charges. An SEC investigation found… Read More
EPermaPave Industries Is A Ponzi Scheme – Brenda Hamilton Attorney
-Posted by Brenda Hamilton- The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced on September 2, 2015 that U.S. District Court Judge Jed S. Rakoff has ordered that Defendants Eric Aronson, Fredric Aaron, and Vincent Buonauro must each disgorge all… Read More
SEC Charges Eldrick Woodley with Embezzlement of Client Funds
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on September 22, 1015, filed fraud charges against Eldrick Woodley, a Houston-based investment advisor, for the embezzlement of more than $147,000 in client capital. According to the SEC’s complaint, filed in the U.S. District… Read More