Securities

  • May 03, 2024

    Hagens Berman To Spearhead Litigation Over Skin Tech Woes

    Hagens Berman Sobol Shapiro LLP was appointed lead counsel in securities litigation claiming Beauty Health Co. hid the news of a defective skin care device, beating competing bids from Glancy Prongay & Murray LLP and Pomerantz LLP, according to an order in Delaware federal court.

  • May 03, 2024

    Binance Founder's Sentence Shaped By Plea And Apology

    Binance founder Changpeng Zhao's willingness to cooperate with law enforcement and accept responsibility in court for the crypto exchange's anti-money laundering violations helped the former CEO land a deal with prosecutors that got him a relatively short prison sentence to close out a yearslong investigation.

  • May 03, 2024

    9th Circ. Orders 2nd Look At Stay In PG&E Wildfire Suit

    The Ninth Circuit on Friday told a lower court to reconsider its order staying claims PG&E investors brought against officers, directors and others over wildfire liability, saying more factors should have been considered before the stay was granted.

  • May 03, 2024

    'Bud And Breakfast' Cannabis Scammer Gets 2 Years In Prison

    An Alaska man who pled guilty to conspiracy stemming from a scam bilking investors out of $722,000 to fund a failed "Bud and Breakfast" tourist lodge and on-site marijuana grow was sentenced to two years in prison in Alaska federal court on Friday, according to the U.S. Attorney's Office.

  • May 03, 2024

    Goldman Settles Decade-Old Metal-Rigging Class Action

    Goldman Sachs Group Inc. has settled a decade-old putative class action claiming the investment bank and others conspired to manipulate platinum and palladium market values, according to a Friday filing with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

  • May 03, 2024

    Nikola Ends Board Takeover Suit As Ex-CEO's Noms Withdraw

    An Arizona federal judge on Thursday agreed to toss Nikola Corp.'s complaint against its former CEO and convicted felon Trevor Milton and several others accusing them of an illegal board takeover by pushing unqualified candidates, after the defendants withdrew their board nominees and the parties amicably resolved the dispute.

  • May 03, 2024

    Chancery OKs Extra Digging Into Trump Media Share Dispute

    The sponsor of a special-purpose acquisition company that took Donald Trump's social media venture public earlier this year won Delaware Court of Chancery approval Friday to briefly dig deeper into disputed share-exchange terms for the deal, with more than $58 million on the line.

  • May 03, 2024

    Hess-Chevron Merger Hit With Class Disclosure Suit In Del.

    A Hess stockholder sued the energy company in Delaware's Court of Chancery over alleged deal disclosure failures in the proposed $53 billion Chevron-Hess merger, adding to a list of complications that include claims by other energy giants to Hess interests.

  • May 03, 2024

    Sentencing Delayed For Ex-Fintech Exec In Crypto Case

    Sentencing for the CEO of fintech company Hydrogen Technology Corp. was delayed Friday after a dispute over how to calculate the amount of money lost in the conspiracy to manipulate the market for Hydrogen's digital assets.

  • May 03, 2024

    3rd Circ. Clarifies Review Standard For Derivative Suits

    In a precedential ruling Friday declining to revive Cognizant Technology investors' derivative claims over a bribery scandal, the full Third Circuit held that the best way to review such cases on appeal was from the beginning, not giving deference to the lower court's decision or considering whether there was an abuse of discretion.

  • May 03, 2024

    SoFi Unit To Pay FINRA $1.1M To Settle Customer ID Claims

    SoFi Securities has agreed to pay $1.1 million to settle Financial Industry Regulatory Authority claims that it lacked a suitable user verification process for the firm's cash management brokerage business, allowing the opening of 800 accounts used by third parties to illegally transfer $8.6 million from other financial institution accounts.

  • May 03, 2024

    Chancery OKs Record-Breaking $100M Pattern Energy Deal

    A $100 million settlement ending state and federal court litigation over Pattern Energy Group Inc.'s $6.1 billion go-private sale in 2020 got the nod from Delaware's Court of Chancery on Friday, along with a requested $26 million fee award and two $25,000 incentive awards for the lead shareholder plaintiffs.

  • May 03, 2024

    Tech Security Firm Founder Sues Buyer For Legal Fees In Del.

    The founder of security and information technology service venture Counter Threat Solutions sued the company that acquired it for legal fee advancement in Delaware's Court of Chancery, after accusing the buyer in a Delaware Superior Court suit of fabricating post-closing indemnity claims and refusing to honor payment terms.

  • May 03, 2024

    Brothers Accuse Cos. Of Mishandling $1.1M EB-5 Investments

    Two brothers from India sued companies behind a combination residential-resort project they invested in under the EB-5 investor visa program, telling a Florida federal court that their green card petitions were denied because the companies mishandled their $1.1 million investment.

  • May 03, 2024

    No Retrial Coming After $20M Cannabis Investor Verdict

    A Los Angeles judge has denied a bid by CADM Inc. for a retrial following a $20 million verdict against it and its affiliates on claims that they defrauded investors with a real estate scheme, finding that the motion was not served to the proper attorneys on time, and even if it had been, the judgment would stand.

  • May 03, 2024

    Kwok's Ex-Chief Of Staff Pleads Out Before $1B Fraud Trial

    The former chief of staff to exiled Chinese billionaire Ho Wan Kwok pled guilty in Manhattan federal court on Friday to participating in a $1 billion investor fraud, less than three weeks before she was scheduled to go to trial alongside her erstwhile boss.

  • May 03, 2024

    SEC Fines Trump Media's Audit Firm For 'Massive Fraud'

    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission said on Friday that it has fined and permanently suspended the public accounting firm of former President Donald Trump's social media company for allegedly running a "sham auditing mill" by failing to meet industry standards in reviewing the financial statements of hundreds of clients.

  • May 02, 2024

    Whistleblower Claims Would 'Destroy' Autonomy, GC Was Told

    Autonomy's former U.S. general counsel testified Thursday in the criminal fraud trial of former CEO Michael Lynch that the company's chief operating officer didn't want a whistleblower's claims to get into court, telling him that while the "law" was on their side, "the facts look bad" and would "destroy Autonomy."

  • May 02, 2024

    SEC Lands $25M Judgment In TikToker-Wannabe Ponzi Suit

    A South Carolina man and his companies must pay the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission nearly $24.9 million to settle claims that he misappropriated investors' money to make Ponzi payments to earlier investors and to pay for luxury cars and over $1 million to TikTok creators, according to judgments issued in Georgia federal court.

  • May 02, 2024

    Ex-JPM Trader Slams DOJ's 'Rank Opportunism' In Doc Suit

    A former JPMorgan Chase & Co. foreign exchange trader is pressing a D.C. federal court to order the release of investigative material from the government's failed market manipulation criminal case against him, saying the U.S. Department of Justice's arguments against disclosure amount to "rank opportunism."

  • May 02, 2024

    Masimo Hit With Derivative Suit Over Audio Co. Acquisition

    The top brass at medical device company Masimo Corp. has been hit with a shareholder derivative action claiming they harmed the company and "confused" investors by pushing through a $1 billion acquisition of an audio equipment company, allegedly causing a steep drop in stock prices and a $5.1 billion market capitalization loss.

  • May 02, 2024

    Tech, Finance Experts Urge CFTC To Consider AI Regs

    Tech advisers urged the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission on Thursday to consider policies to manage the risks associated with artificial intelligence, along with a list of other recommendations detailing potential approaches to the growing use of AI in financial markets.

  • May 02, 2024

    Attys Due For Spam Suit Sanction, But Not $750K, Judges Say

    Class counsel's misconduct in helping instigate a spam text suit against stock-trading app Robinhood Financial LLC warranted sanctions, a Washington state appeals court panel ruled Thursday, but the judges said the $750,000 penalty went over the top in deterring the bad behavior.

  • May 02, 2024

    Microsoft, Activision Seek Del. Court Patch For $68.7B Sale

    Microsoft Corp. and Activision Blizzard petitioned Delaware's Court of Chancery on Thursday for an order validating Activision's already closed but officially "defective" $68.7 billion sale agreement, arguing that the court pointed the two companies to a "solution for missteps in Delaware's General Corporation Law.

  • May 02, 2024

    Chancery Ruling Plays Role In Tesla's S&P Governance Grade

    Business rating agency Standard & Poor's has revised downward to "moderately negative" electric vehicle company Tesla Inc.'s grade for management and governance, pointing in part to CEO Elon Musk's dominant role, and the company's "uncommonly high" risk from lawsuits, including the Delaware Chancery Court's recent scuttling of his $56 billion pay plan.

Expert Analysis

  • Series

    Cheering In The NFL Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Balancing my time between a BigLaw career and my role as an NFL cheerleader has taught me that pursuing your passions outside of work is not a distraction, but rather an opportunity to harness important skills that can positively affect how you approach work and view success in your career, says Rachel Schuster at Sheppard Mullin.

  • Considerations For Disclosing AI Use In SEC Filings

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    Recent remarks from U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Chair Gary Gensler should be heard as a clarion call for public companies to disclose artificial intelligence use, with four takeaways on what companies should disclose, says Richard Hong at Morrison Cohen.

  • Unpacking The New Russia Sanctions And Export Controls

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    Although geographically broad new prohibitions the U.S., U.K. and EU issued last week are somewhat underwhelming in their efforts to target third-country facilitators of Russia sanctions evasion, companies with exposure to noncompliant jurisdictions should pay close attention to their potential impacts, say attorneys at Shearman.

  • Args In APA Case Amplify Justices' Focus On Agency Power

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    In arguments last week in Corner Post v. Federal Reserve, the U.S. Supreme Court justices paid particular importance to the possible ripple effects of their decision, which will address when a facial challenge to long-standing federal rules under the Administrative Procedure Act first accrues and could thus unleash a flood of new lawsuits, say attorneys at Snell & Wilmer.

  • Mitigating Whistleblower Risks After High Court UBS Ruling

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    While it is always good practice for companies to periodically review whistleblower trainings, policies and procedures, the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent whistleblower-friendly ruling in Murray v. UBS Securities helps demonstrate their importance in reducing litigation risk, say attorneys at Arnold & Porter.

  • Series

    ESG Around The World: Gulf Cooperation Council

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    The Gulf Cooperation Council is in the early stages of ESG policy implementation, but recent commitments by both states and corporations — including increases in sustainable finance transactions, environmental commitments, female representation on boards and human rights enforcement — show continuing progress toward broader ESG goals, say attorneys at Cleary.

  • 6 Pointers For Attys To Build Trust, Credibility On Social Media

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    In an era of information overload, attorneys can use social media strategically — from making infographics to leveraging targeted advertising — to cut through the noise and establish a reputation among current and potential clients, says Marly Broudie at SocialEyes Communications.

  • Cos. Must Know How NY, Federal LLC Disclosure Laws Differ

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    Though New York state's new LLC Transparency Act and the federal Corporate Transparency Act impose similar beneficial owner reporting obligations on limited liability companies, New York LLCs should study the important differences between the laws to ensure they are prepared to comply with both, say Abram Ellis, Olenka Burghardt and Jane Jho at Simpson Thacher.

  • 9 Considerations For Divestitures, Carveouts And Spinouts

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    Amid new economic optimism, data protection, transitional services and seven other considerations can help legal practitioners untangle complex divestitures, carveouts and spinouts to unlock value for corporate sellers, say Kimberly Petillo-Décossard and Kristen Rohr at White & Case.

  • Why Fla. High Court Adopting Apex Doctrine Is Monumental

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    The Florida Supreme Court recently solidified the apex doctrine in the Sunshine State, an important development that extends the scope of the doctrine in the state to include both corporate and government officials, and formalizes the requirements for a high-level corporate official to challenge a request for a deposition, says Laura Renstrom at Holland & Knight.

  • 5 Lessons For SaaS Companies After Blackbaud Data Breach

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    Looking at the enforcement actions that software-as-a-service provider Blackbaud resolved with state attorneys general, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the Federal Trade Commission in the past year can help SaaS companies manage these increasingly common forms of data breaches, say attorneys at Orrick.

  • Del. Ruling Stands Out In Thorny Noncompete Landscape

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    In Cantor Fitzgerald v. Ainslie, the Delaware Supreme Court last month upheld the enforceability of forfeiture-for-competition provisions in limited partnership agreements, providing a noteworthy opinion amid a time of increasing disfavor toward noncompetes and following a string of Chancery Court rulings deeming them unreasonable, say Margaret Butler and Steven Goldberg at BakerHostetler.

  • SEC Regs Give Banks Chance To Step Up Cyber Safety Game

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    Just as the Sarbanes-Oxley Act forced financial institutions to undertake best practices in recordkeeping, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s recently effective cybersecurity regulations stand to similarly drive those same enterprises to seek out and implement best practices in cybersecurity, to everyone's benefit, says James Gerber at SimSpace.

  • A Post-Mortem Analysis Of Stroock's Demise

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    After the dissolution of 147-year-old firm Stroock late last year shook up the legal world, a post-mortem analysis of the data reveals a long list of warning signs preceding the firm’s collapse — and provides some insight into how other firms might avoid the same disastrous fate, says Craig Savitzky at Leopard Solutions.

  • Predicting DeFi Regulations At Home And Abroad In 2024

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    Though decentralized finance has advocates on both sides of the Atlantic in figures like U.S. SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce and U.K. Prime Minister Rishi Sunak, DeFi in 2024 seems likely to be folded into existing regulatory frameworks in the U.K. and EU, while anti-crypto scrutiny may discourage DeFi’s growth in the U.S., say Daniel Csefalvay and Eric Martin at BCLP.

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