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White Collar
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March 28, 2024
Romney Tells DEA Pot Review Must Heed Treaty Obligations
Sen. Mitt Romney, R-Utah, on Wednesday expressed skepticism about federal health regulators' recommendation to loosen marijuana restrictions and pressed the U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration to explain how it would consider the drug's status in light of U.S. treaties.
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March 28, 2024
Bankman-Fried Gets 25 Years For 'Very Bad Bet' Of FTX Fraud
FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried was sentenced Thursday to 25 years in prison for stealing more than $11 billion from customers, investors and lenders of his now-collapsed cryptocurrency empire, with a Manhattan federal judge saying the infamous risk-taker "made a very bad bet about the likelihood of getting caught."
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March 27, 2024
Hunter Biden Judge Doubts Tax Charges Politically Motivated
A California federal judge Wednesday appeared unpersuaded by Hunter Biden's claim that the special counsel's decision to file criminal tax charges after a plea deal collapsed was motivated by pressure from Republican lawmakers, remarking that "there really is no evidence to support that contention."
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March 27, 2024
No New Trial For Hedge Fund Boss In Forex Rigging Case
A New York federal judge on Friday refused to acquit or call for a new trial for a U.K.-based hedge fund chief convicted of illegally manipulating a currency exchange rate, rejecting his argument that his alleged conduct lacked sufficient ties to the United States.
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March 27, 2024
9th Circ. Revives Claims Against Apple In Crypto Theft Row
The Ninth Circuit on Wednesday partially reinstated a putative class action accusing Apple of misrepresenting the safety of its App Store after users' cryptocurrency was stolen from an app, finding that while a federal tech immunity law shielded Apple from an array of fraud and wiretapping claims, three consumer protection claims could move forward.
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March 27, 2024
Evidence On Ex-Mozambique Official Stays In $2B Fraud Suit
A former Mozambique finance minister can't keep evidence from his phone out of a case alleging his involvement in a $2 billion scheme to siphon government-backed project funds from that country after a federal judge in Brooklyn on Wednesday backed the phone's seizure and search.
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March 27, 2024
DOJ, SEC Looking At Chemours After Internal Accounting Probe
The Chemours Co. said on Wednesday that the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the U.S. Department of Justice have launched a probe into the chemical company after an internal review revealed that former executives engaged in unethical accounting practices.
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March 27, 2024
Merger News Boosts Rivals, 'Shadow Trading' Jury Told
Medivation's 2016 sale announcement would have an expected positive "spillover effect" on rival Incyte's stock price, a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission expert testified Wednesday in a "shadow trading" trial over claims an ex-Medivation executive exploited confidential news of his company's imminent acquisition to buy shares in the competitor.
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March 27, 2024
Minor League Players Charged With Insider Trading
California federal prosecutors have hit current and former minor league baseball players with claims they made profits totaling over $162,000 trading off insider information about burger chain Jack in the Box's $575 million acquisition of its fellow chain Del Taco.
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March 27, 2024
Justices Poised To Expand Repeat Offenders' Jury Trial Rights
The U.S. Supreme Court appeared likely Wednesday to agree with the Biden administration and the criminal defense bar that repeat offenders have a constitutional right to let a jury decide if past offenses were sufficiently distinct to trigger lengthy prison terms under a prominent sentencing enhancement.
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March 27, 2024
SD Gov. Seeks Federal Funds Audit Of Tribal Law Enforcement
South Dakota Gov. Kristi Noem has asked President Joe Biden's administration to conduct a thorough audit of federal funding for the state's nine Native American tribes, saying additional law enforcement resources are urgently needed on reservation lands.
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March 27, 2024
SEC Wins Nearly $1M Against Penny Stock Influencer
A California man who used his large social media following to manipulate penny stock prices has been ordered to pay more than $917,000 by a federal judge who said the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission proved the influencer committed fraud by failing to tell his followers he was selling off the very same stocks he was urging them to buy.
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March 27, 2024
Energy Co. Origis Exits Investor Suit Over Devalued Shares
Renewable energy company Origis USA Inc. has escaped a suit by former shareholders after a New York federal judge concluded that the plaintiffs failed to show that the company was privy to an alleged scheme by its now-former CEO to induce them to sell their stakes for considerably less than the $1.4 billion they were later sold for.
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March 27, 2024
Cannabis Caucus Dems Urge Garland To Restore Pot Protections
The two Democratic members of the U.S. House of Representatives' Congressional Cannabis Caucus blasted Attorney General Merrick Garland on Wednesday for not reissuing "overdue" protections for marijuana businesses acting in compliance with state and tribal law.
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March 27, 2024
The Ohtani-Shaped Cloud Looming Over The MLB Season
Major League Baseball opens its season in an awkward position Thursday, with Los Angeles Dodgers superstar Shohei Ohtani at the margins of a still-unfolding gambling scandal that may have limited legal blowback, but will nevertheless present existential questions for the league.
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March 27, 2024
Sotomayor 'Annoyed' By Supreme Court's Focus On History
U.S. Supreme Court Justice Sonia Sotomayor seemed to release some pent-up frustration Wednesday over the court's increasing focus on history and tradition when reviewing constitutional disputes, suggesting the method frequently used by the court's more conservative members isn't foolproof.
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March 27, 2024
PwC Hiding Key Details Of Tax Scandal, Aussie Senate Says
PwC is hiding key details from investigators about its partners marketing confidential drafts of tax laws to top U.S. firms, waited years to review the matter internally and does not appear capable of making substantive reforms, an Australian Senate committee said Wednesday.
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March 27, 2024
Imprisoned Bitcoin Fraudster Fights Loss Amount At 7th Circ.
A Nigerian man serving eight years in prison for carrying out an $8 million bitcoin fraud scheme told the Seventh Circuit on Wednesday that he should be resentenced because a lower court incorrectly considered $46 million in intended losses while determining his sentencing range.
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March 27, 2024
Ex-NJ Corrections Officer Admits To Scamming $600K
A former New Jersey corrections officer has admitted to orchestrating two fraud schemes, including an alleged cryptocurrency scam that resulted in losses of more than $600,000, the U.S. attorney for New Jersey has announced.
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March 27, 2024
Coinbase Denied Early Victory Over SEC Enforcement Action
A Manhattan federal judge on Wednesday rejected crypto exchange Coinbase's bid to defeat the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's claims that it operated as an unregistered securities exchange, broker and clearing agency.
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March 27, 2024
Ex-Mich. AG Hopeful Can't Show Bias In Criminal Election Case
A Michigan attorney who advanced baseless 2020 election conspiracy claims must face charges he tampered with voting machines, after a judge said Wednesday that the lawyer's previous failed suit against the state demanding an election audit did not make prosecutors biased.
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March 27, 2024
Feds Say Murdaugh Lied, Broke Plea Deal Over $9M Fraud
Alex Murdaugh, the South Carolina attorney serving a life sentence for killing his wife and son, was dishonest with the government and should potentially face a harsher prison sentence than the one proposed in a plea agreement on federal charges of stealing at least $9 million from clients, prosecutors said.
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March 27, 2024
Misconduct In 'Fat Leonard' Case Sinks 3 More Guilty Pleas
Alleged prosecutorial misconduct has set up three more defendants charged in relation to the U.S. Navy's "Fat Leonard" scandal to yank their original guilty pleas so they can plead guilty to much less serious charges.
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March 27, 2024
Rosen Tells Ethics Panel Jeffrey Clark Was 'Out Of Bounds'
Former acting U.S. Attorney General Jeffrey Rosen testified Wednesday that his onetime subordinate, former U.S. Department of Justice attorney Jeffrey Clark, went far beyond the scope of his duties in the final days of the Trump administration, as Clark faces disciplinary charges from a Washington, D.C., attorney ethics panel.
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March 27, 2024
Advice-Of-Counsel Defense Curbed From NC Tax Fraud Trial
Two St. Louis attorneys and a North Carolina insurance agent can't fall back on advice-of-counsel defenses during their upcoming tax fraud trial after a federal judge found that they had failed to follow court orders requiring them to hand over information about the advice they sought.
Expert Analysis
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Best Practices For Cos. Navigating US-China Investigations
Given recent enforcement trends and the broad jurisdictional reach of U.S. laws, companies with operations in China must enhance their compliance programs in order to balance new corporate enforcement expectations with Chinese data protection and privacy requirements, say attorneys at Paul Hastings.
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Tips For Litigating Against Pro Se Parties In Complex Disputes
Litigating against self-represented parties in complex cases can pose unique challenges for attorneys, but for the most part, it requires the same skills that are useful in other cases — from documenting everything to understanding one’s ethical duties, says Bryan Ketroser at Alto Litigation.
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What Whistleblowing Trends Mean For Securities Litigation
A recent survey on whistleblowing-related topics suggests several valuable lessons for companies to consider regarding securities and shareholder litigation, and underscores the need to implement and advertise robust whistleblowing policies to employees, say attorneys at Freshfields.
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Planning Compliance For Updated FinCEN Reporting Rules
Although the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network's reporting deadline for beneficial ownership information may seem far off, companies should act now to determine which corporate entities must report and what information must be collected, given the potential time, resources and legal questions involved, say attorneys at Crowell & Moring.
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5 Ways To Leverage Recent DOJ 'Safe Harbor' M&A Policy
Companies can take a series of practical steps both before and after closing to gain maximum advantage from the recently announced U.S. Department of Justice merger and acquisition safe harbor policy and minimize enforcement risk, say Jonny Frank and Jeremy Hirsch at StoneTurn.
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To Comply With Campaign Finance Rules, Watch The Calendar
Corporations, campaigns and community advocates alike can all stay on the right side of federal campaign finance law during the 2024 election season by committing to observe the many overlapping dates and compliance windows that limit third-party coordination with candidates and electioneering communications, say attorneys at Wiley.
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Bank's Penalties Highlight Key AML Compliance Expectations
Recently, Shinhan Bank America faced coordinated enforcement actions from federal and state financial agencies for ongoing, unremedied anti-money laundering compliance failures, revealing current areas of regulatory oversight and focus, including expectations that AML compliance data systems provide a 360-degree view of customers, say attorneys at Jenner & Block.
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Pro Bono Work Is Powerful Self-Help For Attorneys
Oct. 22-28 is Pro Bono Week, serving as a useful reminder that offering free legal help to the public can help attorneys expand their legal toolbox, forge community relationships and create human connections, despite the challenges of this kind of work, says Orlando Lopez at Culhane Meadows.
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Avoiding Bribery, Corruption And Sanctions Risks In Int'l M&A
Given the evolving merger and acquisition landscape — as evidenced by the Justice Department’s recently announced safe harbor policy — acquirers conducting international transactions must build bribery, anti-corruption and sanctions risk considerations squarely into their due diligence processes, say Brian Markley and Jennifer Potts at Cahill Gordon.
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Reconstruction-Era Laws Show Jan. 6 Cases Are Not Political
The renewed use of Reconstruction-era laws in indictments stemming from the Jan. 6 insurrection demonstrates that these statutes serve as a bulwark against erosion of the federal system, and provides a counterpoint to the public accusations that certain prosecutions are politically motivated, say Solomon Shinerock and Annika Conrad at Lewis Baach.
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Series
Playing In A Rock Cover Band Makes Me A Better Lawyer
Performing in a classic rock cover band has driven me to hone several skills — including focus, organization and networking — that have benefited my professional development, demonstrating that taking time to follow your muse outside of work can be a boon to your career, says Michael Gambro at Cadwalader.
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Series
The Pop Culture Docket: Judge Espinosa On 'Lincoln Lawyer'
The murder trials in Netflix’s “The Lincoln Lawyer” illustrate the stark contrast between the ethical high ground that fosters and maintains the criminal justice system's integrity, and the ethical abyss that can undermine it, with an important reminder for all legal practitioners, say Judge Adam Espinosa and Andrew Howard at the Colorado 2nd Judicial District Court.
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A Closer Look At Evolving Early Release Programs
As the implementation of the First Step Act continues to progress and the U.S. Sentencing Commission amends its guidelines, white collar defense attorneys should understand the many mechanisms that can help reduce a client’s prison sentence early on in any case, say attorneys at Abell Eskew.
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How Del. 'Arising Out Of' Ruling May Affect Insurance Cases
The Delaware Supreme Court decision in Ace American Insurance v. Guaranteed Rate focused on a professional services exclusion, but the ruling has wide-ranging application in insurance coverage disputes involving any exclusions that employ "arising out of" or similar prefatory language, say Keith McKenna and Maria Brinkmann at Cohen Ziffer.
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Teach Your Witness About 'Good' And 'Bad' Testimony Words
To ensure honest and accurate testimony in trials and depositions, attorneys must take care to educate their witnesses about the problematic words opposing counsel may use, such as “always” and “must,” and the effective words they can use in response, like “potentially” and “depends,” say Steve Wood and Bill Kanasky at Courtroom Sciences.