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White Collar
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June 04, 2024
Ontrak CEO Shed $20M In Stock With Insider Info, Jury Hears
Ontrak Inc.'s founder rushed to dump over $20 million of the healthcare company's stock using insider information about a souring relationship with its biggest client, Cigna, helping him avoid $12 million in losses, prosecutors told California federal jurors Tuesday in a first-of-its-kind securities fraud trial.
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June 04, 2024
Brooklyn Man Booked In Betting Scheme With NBA Player
A Brooklyn man has been charged in New York federal court with conspiring to defraud a betting company through "prop" bets involving an NBA player who has since been banned from the league for life.
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June 04, 2024
HP Fraud Charges Against Ex-Autonomy Execs Head To Jury
Closing arguments wrapped Tuesday in a California federal criminal trial over claims that former Autonomy CEO Michael Lynch and ex-finance vice president Stephen Chamberlain duped HP into overpaying billions for the British tech company, with Chamberlain's lawyer saying his client did his job "in good faith," which, in the court's eyes, is a "complete defense."
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June 04, 2024
Ex-Startup CEO Gets 3-Year Sentence For Embezzling $5.9M
A D.C. federal judge on Tuesday sentenced the founder and former CEO of an alternative energy startup to three years of incarceration for embezzling $5.9 million from his company to fund what the judge called "a lavish, and to some extent ridiculous, lifestyle."
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June 04, 2024
SEC Inks Deal With Ex-Food Co. Execs Over Misspent Funds
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has reached a $7.8 million settlement with former executives of HF Foods over claims they siphoned millions of dollars from the company for personal use in a scheme that was eventually revealed after HF Foods went public with a blank check company.
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June 04, 2024
DOJ Remains 'Clear Eyed' About No-Poach Prosecutions
A senior U.S. Department of Justice Antitrust Division prosecutor continued Tuesday to emphasize the importance of criminal cases accusing employers of fixing wages or curtailing recruitment and hiring of workers from rivals, asserting that despite courtroom defeats, enforcers are trying to learn from past failures.
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June 04, 2024
Fla. Biz Owners Indicted On Grant-Writing Fraud Conspiracy
Two northern Florida business owners have been federally indicted on fraud conspiracy-related charges in connection to a scheme in which they allegedly stole nearly $3 million from minority-owned companies by promising grant-writing services that were never delivered.
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June 04, 2024
Hunter Biden Didn't Knowingly Lie On Gun Form, Atty Says
When Robert Hunter Biden bought a gun in October 2018, he denied on a federal form that he was addicted to drugs — not because he was lying to the government, but because he was lying to himself, his attorney said Tuesday in Delaware federal court.
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June 04, 2024
'Miles Guo Stole My Money': NY Jury Hears Of Alleged Fraud
A former supporter of exiled Chinese billionaire Miles Guo testified in Manhattan federal court Tuesday that the purported billionaire conned her into investing more than $100,000 in the media company he founded alongside former Donald Trump adviser Steve Bannon, describing Guo's interrelated business ventures as a "mafia."
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June 04, 2024
Netflix Settles Central Park 5 Defamation Case Ahead Of Trial
Netflix has settled a lawsuit alleging one of its docuseries defamed a Manhattan prosecutor who was involved in the Central Park Five case, agreeing Tuesday to donate $1 million to a nonprofit dedicated to preventing wrongful convictions.
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June 04, 2024
Garland Defends DOJ Integrity, Demurs On Justices' Ethics
Attorney General Merrick Garland on Tuesday defended the Department of Justice's independence, deflecting questions about ethics scandals at the U.S. Supreme Court and rejecting Donald Trump's "conspiracy theory" that federal prosecutors were the real force behind his recent conviction.
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June 04, 2024
Nurse Staffing Exec Wants Antitrust, Fraud Charges Separated
An indicted home health care staffing executive asked a Nevada federal court to separate the antitrust charge against him for allegedly fixing nurses wages from claims that he concealed the conspiracy and government probe when selling the business for more than $10 million.
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June 04, 2024
Psychiatrist's Billing Scheme Warrants 11 Years, Feds Say
A psychiatrist convicted of billing Medicare and private insurers for $19 million worth of treatments he never provided should serve more than 11 years in prison for the "brazen, greed-fueled" fraud scheme, prosecutors have told a Boston federal judge.
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June 04, 2024
Jury Still Deadlocked Over Carhartt Atty's Embezzlement Trial
A Detroit-area jury remained deadlocked Tuesday as it deliberated for the second day on embezzlement charges against a Michigan attorney who is accused of stealing millions from Carhartt heiress Gretchen Valade when he was trustee of her irrevocable trust.
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June 04, 2024
Fox Rothschild Partner Can't Testify In NJ Fraud Retrial
Fox Rothschild LLP partner Ernest E. Badway can't serve as an expert witness for a businessman facing retrial on securities fraud claims, a New Jersey federal judge ruled Tuesday, siding with the government's contention that the testimony would be irrelevant.
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June 04, 2024
SC Man Gets 7 Years For Threatening Fed. Judge, Courthouse
A South Carolina federal judge on Tuesday granted prosecutors' request for an upward departure from a sentencing advisory by giving a seven-year prison sentence to a man who copped to sending a letter threatening to kill a federal judge and warning that he might blow up a courthouse.
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June 04, 2024
Clinton Says Dismissal Of Trump's RICO Suit Was Warranted
Hillary Clinton and members of the Democratic National Committee urged the Eleventh Circuit not to revive Donald Trump's suit alleging they conspired to push false claims of Russian election interference in 2016, arguing that the dismissal and resulting sanctions for pursuing the frivolous suit should be kept in place.
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June 04, 2024
SDNY Shakes Up Its Leadership After 2 Departures
On the heels of former Southern District of New York Deputy U.S. Attorney Andrea Griswold's transition to the partner ranks of Skadden Arps Slate Meagher & Flom LLP, U.S. Attorney for SDNY Damian Williams on Monday announced two newly appointed attorneys to replace her and the office's departed executive assistant U.S. attorney.
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June 04, 2024
Ex-Lumentum VP Traded On Merger Info, SEC Says
The former vice president of product line management at Lumentum has been accused by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission of using nonpublic information about a pending merger to trade stock during his time with the laser products company.
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June 04, 2024
Conn. Judicial Marshal Charged With Workers' Comp Fraud
A judicial marshal for the Connecticut Judicial Branch has been arrested and charged with trying to steal $891.52 in workers' compensation benefits after he was injured while trying to restrain a prisoner, prosecutors said.
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June 04, 2024
Baldwin Prosecutors Seek Immunity For Armorer's Testimony
New Mexico state prosecutors asked a judge Monday to grant immunity to a convicted "Rust" film armorer in a bid to compel her to take the stand during actor-producer Alec Baldwin's upcoming involuntary manslaughter trial in the on-set shooting death of a cinematographer.
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June 04, 2024
Archegos Jury Note Demands Info After Atty's COVID Absence
A juror hearing the government's $36 billion market manipulation case against Archegos founder Bill Hwang took the unusual step Tuesday of asking if there was "something we are not being told" after COVID-19 sidelined a lawyer and prompted others to don masks.
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June 04, 2024
Hunter Biden Judge Won't Bar Drug Abuse Related Evidence
A federal judge overruled several objections to evidence admissible in presidential son Hunter Biden's gun purchase trial in Delaware federal court, including Biden's objection to photos purportedly documenting his drug abuse, before the sides launched into opening arguments Tuesday morning.
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June 04, 2024
Research Co. Pays Record $35M Fine In Dog Abuse Case
A clinical research company has agreed to pay a record $35 million fine for violations of the Animal Welfare Act as part of a deal to resolve criminal charges stemming from the abuse of beagles that it bred for medical research.
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June 04, 2024
Ohtani's Ex-Interpreter Cops To Stealing $17M From MLB Star
Shohei Ohtani's former interpreter pled guilty Tuesday to bank and tax fraud charges in a packed Santa Ana, California, federal courtroom, admitting he stole nearly $17 million from the MLB superstar to help pay off massive gambling debts.
Expert Analysis
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Perspectives
Context Is Everything In Justices' Sentencing Relief Decision
In the U.S. Supreme Court’s recent Pulsifer v. U.S. decision, limiting the number of drug offenders eligible for sentencing relief, the majority and dissent adopted very different contextual frames for interpreting the meaning of “and” — with the practical impact being that thousands more defendants will be subject to severe mandatory minimums, says Douglas Berman at Moritz College of Law.
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Opinion
The SEC Is Engaging In Regulation By Destruction
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's recent use of regulation by enforcement against digital assets indicates it's more interested in causing harm to crypto companies than providing guidance to the markets or protecting investors, says J.W. Verret at George Mason University.
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Former Minn. Chief Justice Instructs On Writing Better Briefs
Former Minnesota Supreme Court Chief Justice Lorie Gildea, now at Greenberg Traurig, offers strategies on writing more effective appellate briefs from her time on the bench.
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Preparing For Possible Calif. Criminal Antitrust Enforcement
Though a recent announcement that the California Attorney General's Office will resume criminal prosecutions in support of its antitrust enforcement may be mere saber-rattling, companies and their counsel should nevertheless be prepared for interactions with the California AG's Antitrust Section that are not limited to civil liability issues, say Dylan Ballard and Lillian Sun at V&E.
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What To Know About IRS' New Jet Use Audit Campaign
The Internal Revenue Service recently announced plans to open several dozen audits scrutinizing executive use of company jets, so companies should be prepared to show the business reasons for travel, and how items like imputed income and deduction disallowance were calculated, say attorneys at Morgan Lewis.
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In Bribery Case, High Court's Past Is Probably Prologue
The U.S. Supreme Court will soon hear oral arguments in Snyder v. U.S. on the issue of whether federal law criminalizes gratuities that are not tied to an explicit quid pro quo, and precedent strongly indicates the court will limit an expansive reading of the bribery statute, say attorneys Sami Azhari and Don Davidson.
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Stay Interviews Are Key To Retaining Legal Talent
Even as the economy shifts and layoffs continue, law firms still want to retain their top attorneys, and so-called stay interviews — informal conversations with employees to identify potential issues before they lead to turnover — can be a crucial tool for improving retention and morale, say Tina Cohen Nicol and Kate Reder Sheikh at Major Lindsey.
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Independent Regulator Could Chip Away At FIFA Autonomy
After the U.K.'s recent proposal for an independent football regulator, FIFA's commitment to safeguarding football association autonomy remains unwavering, despite a history of complexities arising from controversies in the bidding and hosting of major tournaments, say Yasin Patel at Church Court Chambers and Caitlin Haberlin-Chambers at SLAM Global.
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New Concerns, Same Tune At This Year's SIFMA Conference
At this year's Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association conference on legal developments affecting the financial services industry, government regulators’ emphasis on whistleblowing and AI washing represented a new refrain in an increasingly familiar chorus calling for prompt and thorough corporate cooperation, say attorneys at Fried Frank.
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Calif. High Court Ruling Has Lessons For Waiving Jury Trials
The California Supreme Court’s recent decision in TriCoast Builders v. Fonnegra, denying relief to a contractor that had waived its right to a jury trial, shows that litigants should always post jury fees as soon as possible, and seek writ review if the court denies relief from a waiver, say Steven Fleischman and Nicolas Sonnenburg at Horvitz & Levy.
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Opinion
DOJ Press Office Is Not Fulfilling Its Stated Mission
The U.S. Department of Justice Office of Public Affairs’ apparent practice of issuing press releases when someone is indicted or convicted, but not when a defendant prevails, undermines its stated mission to disseminate “current, complete and accurate” information, and has negative real-world ramifications, says Sara Kropf at Kropf Moseley.
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Reducing Risk While DOJ Plans New Whistleblower Rewards
In light of the Department of Justice's newly announced plan to create a comprehensive whistleblower reward program to fill the gaps in the current patchwork of federal incentives, companies should mitigate their risk of external claims now by implementing internal systems where employees can confidently and anonymously report concerns, say Caleb Hayes-Deats and Walter Hawes at MoloLamken.
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Series
Spray Painting Makes Me A Better Lawyer
My experiences as an abstract spray paint artist have made me a better litigator, demonstrating — in more ways than one — how fluidity and flexibility are necessary parts of a successful legal practice, says Erick Sandlin at Bracewell.
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DOJ's Safe Harbor Policy May Quietly Favor M&A Enforcement
In a change that has received little attention, the U.S. Justice Department's recently codified safe harbor policy essentially reads the Antitrust Division's criminal enforcement out of the policy entirely, and now appears to favor merger enforcement in antitrust, rather than criminal enforcement, as originally intended, say Daniel Oakes and James Attridge at Axinn.
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Takeaways From The 2023 DOJ Fraud Section Report
Attorneys at Wiley discuss notable trends from the U.S. Department of Justice's recently reported Fraud Section activity last year and highlight areas of enforcement to watch for in the future, including healthcare fraud and Foreign Corrupt Practices Act violations.