White Collar

  • February 28, 2024

    No Direct Evidence Ties 'Rust' Armorer To Live Ammo, Jury Told

    A New Mexico detective testified Wednesday in the involuntary manslaughter trial of "Rust" film armorer Hannah Gutierrez-Reed that investigators were unable to definitively show who brought live ammunition onto the movie's set before the fatal shooting of a cinematographer.

  • February 28, 2024

    Judge Clears Fujian Jinhua On Feds' Trade Secrets Claims

    A California federal judge has found that the federal government failed to show semiconductor-maker Fujian Jinhua Integrated Circuit Co. Ltd. is guilty of various claims in a suit accusing it of economic espionage in a trade secrets case.

  • February 28, 2024

    Construction Co. Boss Gets 9 Mos. For $1M Payroll Tax Fraud

    A Boston federal judge has sentenced the owner of two Massachusetts construction companies to nine months in prison for failing to pay more than $1 million in employment taxes over a decade.

  • February 28, 2024

    Embattled Philly Loan Biz Principals Hit With RICO Charges

    Legal troubles for the principals of Philadelphia's Par Funding cash advance company are mounting as federal prosecutors hit them with a new indictment adding Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act allegations on top of existing charges that the principals bilked investors out of hundreds of millions of dollars and threatened violence against borrowers.

  • February 28, 2024

    Wash. Man Accused Of Killing, Selling Eagles To Plead Guilty

    One of two men accused of conspiring to kill federally protected bald eagles and golden eagles on tribal lands in northwest Montana to sell on the black market has entered a plea agreement, court records show.

  • February 28, 2024

    COVID Fraud Jury Can't Hear Of Gov't's Loan Error, Feds Say

    A jury shouldn't be shown evidence of the U.S. government's error in approving a Michigan business owner's application for a Paycheck Protection Program loan while he was under indictment, federal prosecutors have argued.

  • February 28, 2024

    Ex-NYPD Officer Accused Of Forex Investment Fraud

    A former NYPD officer has been charged with using misrepresentations to induce people to invest in his foreign exchange fund and then paying them back with proceeds from future investors to give the appearance of legitimacy.

  • February 28, 2024

    G20 To Talk Global Minimum Wealth Tax At Brazil's Behest

    The Group of 20 nations' finance ministers and central bank governors will hear proposals for a global minimum tax on wealth Thursday, Brazil's finance minister said Wednesday while expressing support for the policy idea at the opening of meetings in São Paulo.

  • February 28, 2024

    Supreme Court Will Decide Trump's Criminal Immunity Claim

    The U.S. Supreme Court said Wednesday it will review former President Donald Trump's claim that he is immune from federal charges related to interfering in the 2020 presidential election, setting oral arguments in the case for late April. 

  • February 28, 2024

    Halkbank Immunity Gambit Doesn't Appear To Sway 2nd Circ.

    The Second Circuit did not appear keen Wednesday to dismiss criminal charges accusing Halkbank of laundering over $1 billion of Iran oil proceeds, after the U.S. Supreme Court directed arguments on the Turkish state-owned lender's assertion that common-law sovereign immunity protects it.

  • February 28, 2024

    Tax Preparer Cops To $2.6M Return Fraud After Jury Seated

    A Texas man filed a last-minute guilty plea to arranging around 400 false tax returns just after a jury was seated in his criminal case this week, according to court documents filed in Lone Star State federal court.

  • February 28, 2024

    Judge Says Ermi Counterclaims In Qui Tam Case Can Stand

    A Georgia federal judge has refused to free Ermi LLC's former chief compliance officer from counterclaims the company lodged in response to her whistleblower suit accusing the company of fraud and retaliation, with the judge saying the company has adequately alleged breaches of fiduciary duty and contract claims.

  • February 28, 2024

    Classified Docs Out Of Defense's Reach In Mar-A-Lago Case

    The Florida federal judge overseeing former President Donald Trump's criminal case over allegedly mishandling secret documents after leaving office ruled Wednesday that defense counsel can't see government motions asking to restrict classified information produced in discovery, a day after Trump's two co-defendants were prohibited from reviewing 5,100 pages of classified material.

  • February 28, 2024

    Erika Girardi Can't Shed Costume Merchant's Suit

    A California federal judge has kept alive a costume merchant's malicious prosecution claim against singer and reality TV star Erika Girardi, saying the merchant showed evidence that Girardi had him wrongfully arrested and prosecuted on made-up fraud charges.

  • February 28, 2024

    US Trustee Taps Ex-Prosecutor To Be FTX Examiner

    The U.S. Trustee's Office has urged a Delaware bankruptcy judge to allow Robert Cleary, a former U.S. attorney who is now with Patterson Belknap Webb & Tyler LLP, to investigate FTX's finances as an examiner in the defunct cryptocurrency company's Chapter 11 case.

  • February 28, 2024

    Trump Can't Freeze $465M Penalty But Can Seek Loans

    A New York state appellate judge on Wednesday refused to freeze the $465 million civil fraud judgment against Donald Trump while he appeals the award, but said the former president could take out loans to cover the cost of the judgment.  

  • February 28, 2024

    NuVasive Can Pierce Co. To Collect From Ex-Rep, Judge Says

    NuVasive Inc. can pierce the corporate veil to collect a $617,000-plus arbitration judgment it won against a company operated by one of its former sales representatives who improperly cut ties with the medical device company and violated his noncompete agreement, a Boston federal judge has ruled. 

  • February 28, 2024

    DOJ Atty, University Of Chicago Prof Returns To MoloLamken

    National boutique firm MoloLamken said Tuesday that legal scholar and University of Chicago law professor Eric Posner will return to the firm after a stint as counsel in the Justice Department's Antitrust Division.

  • February 28, 2024

    NY Judge In Trump Case Receives Suspicious White Powder

    A suspicious white powder spilled out of an envelope addressed to the judge who ruled against Donald Trump in his New York civil fraud case, prompting emergency personnel to flood the courthouse at 60 Centre St. in Manhattan on Wednesday.

  • February 28, 2024

    Justices Allow Idaho Execution, But State 'Unable To Proceed'

    The U.S. Supreme Court on Wednesday cleared the way for Idaho to execute a man for the murder of a fellow inmate, refusing to review his claim that Idaho's continued execution of prisoners whose death sentences were issued by judges and not juries violates the Eighth Amendment.

  • February 27, 2024

    Bankman-Fried Urges No More Than 6.5 Years For FTX Fraud

    FTX founder Sam Bankman-Fried asked a Manhattan federal judge late Tuesday for a sentence that releases him "promptly" after his conviction for stealing billions from customers of the now-collapsed crypto exchange, arguing that federal sentencing guidelines recommend no more than six-and-a-half years in prison.

  • February 27, 2024

    Eagles Rocker Testifies His Draft Lyrics Were Stolen, Hawked

    Eagles singer and lyricist Don Henley took the stand this week in the criminal case against three men who allegedly tried to sell what prosecutors say were the rock star's stolen draft lyric sheets, telling a state judge he never wanted anyone to see his creative "detritus."

  • February 27, 2024

    'Rust' Armorer Regretted Not Checking Gun 'More,' Jury Hears

    A New Mexico state jury on Tuesday watched a law enforcement interview in which Hannah Gutierrez-Reed, armorer for the film "Rust," expressed remorse for not having more thoroughly checked a prop gun that went off in actor Alec Baldwin's hand, killing a cinematographer.

  • February 27, 2024

    Fed's Barr Urges Careful Bank Counterparty Risk Practices

    The Federal Reserve's vice chair for supervision said Tuesday that banks should closely manage their exposure to counterparties, including by carefully measuring the credit risks they pose and using conservative margining practices.

  • February 27, 2024

    NJ Real Estate Fund Executive Cops To $658M Ponzi Scheme

    The CEO of a Garden State real estate investment fund pled guilty in New Jersey federal court on Tuesday to defrauding more than 2,000 investors through a $658 million Ponzi scheme, while also evading millions of dollars in tax liabilities, according to federal prosecutors.

Expert Analysis

  • Checking In On How SuperValu Has Altered FCA Litigation

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    Four months after the U.S. Supreme Court's ruling in U.S. ex rel. Chutte v. SuperValu, the decision's reach may be more limited than initially anticipated, with the expansion of the scienter standard counterbalanced by some potential defense tools for defendants, say Elena Quattrone and Olivia Plinio at Epstein Becker.

  • Tossed FIFA Bribery Convictions May Spur New DOJ Offense

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    After a New York federal court vacated the bribery convictions of two defendants in the U.S. Department of Justice’s sprawling FIFA probe, prosecutors may continue to pursue foreign commercial corruption through other means, albeit with some limitations, say attorneys at Cleary.

  • Series

    Participating In Living History Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    My role as a baron in a living history group, and my work as volunteer corporate counsel for a book series fan association, has provided me several opportunities to practice in unexpected areas of law — opening doors to experiences that have nurtured invaluable personal and professional skills, says Matthew Parker at the Nebraska Department of Health and Human Services.

  • Opinion

    Private Equity Owners Can Remedy Law Firms' Agency Issues

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    Nonlawyer, private-equity ownership of law firms can benefit shareholders and others vulnerable to governance issues such as disparate interests, and can in turn help resolve agency problems, says Michael Di Gennaro at The Law Practice Exchange.

  • Opinion

    Calif. Ruling Got It Wrong On Trial Courts' Gatekeeping Role

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    Ten years after the California Supreme Court reshaped trial judges’ role in admitting expert opinion testimony, a state appeals court's Bader v. Johnson & Johnson ruling appears to undermine this precedent and will likely create confusion about the scope of trial courts’ gatekeeping responsibility, say Robert Wright and Nicole Hood at Horvitz & Levy.

  • How Jan. 6 Riot Cases Could Affect White Collar Defendants

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    Though the prosecutions of individuals involved in the Jan. 6 attack on the U.S. Capitol deal with fact patterns markedly different from white collar offenses, the emerging case law on what it means to act “corruptly” will likely pose risks and opportunities for white collar defendants and their attorneys, says Ben Jernigan at Zuckerman Spaeder.

  • How To Protect Atty-Client Privilege While Using Generative AI

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    When using generative artificial intelligence tools, attorneys should consider several safeguards to avoid breaches or complications in attorney-client privilege, say Antonious Sadek and Christopher Campbell at DLA Piper.

  • Futility Exception To Remanding Rule Could Be On Last Legs

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    A recent Fifth Circuit decision squarely confronting the futility exception to remanding cases with insufficient subject matter jurisdiction leaves the Ninth Circuit alone on one side of a circuit split, portending a tenuous future for the exception, say Brett Venn and Davis Williams at Jones Walker.

  • How New Lawyers Can Leverage Feedback For Growth

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    Embracing constructive criticism as a tool for success can help new lawyers accelerate their professional growth and law firms build a culture of continuous improvement, says Katie Aldrich at Fringe Professional Development.

  • RICO Trade Secret Standard Prevails Within 9th Circ. Courts

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    Federal courts in the Ninth Circuit seem to be requiring a relatively high degree of factual detail — arguably more than is expressly mandated by statute — to plead and maintain Racketeer and Corrupt Organizations Act claims in trade secret disputes, says Cary Sullivan at Jones Day.

  • Post-Wynn Dismissal FARA Reform Bill May Have A Shot

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    A recently introduced bill in Congress, prompted by a federal court’s dismissal of charges against Steve Wynn last year, would amend the Foreign Agents Registration Act to clarify that foreign agents have an ongoing obligation to register under the statute, and may be sufficiently narrow to become law where previous reform efforts have failed, say attorneys at Covington.

  • Corporate Compliance Lessons From FirstEnergy Scandal

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    Fallout from a massive bribery scheme involving Ohio electric utility FirstEnergy and state officeholders — including the recent sentencing of two defendants — has critical corporate governance takeaways for companies and individuals seeking to influence government policymaking, say attorneys at Wilson Sonsini.

  • Dissecting The Proposed Foreign Extortion Prevention Act

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    If the Foreign Extortion Prevention Act — recently introduced in Congress seeking to fill a gap in the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act — becomes law, it will be music to the ears of many U.S. businesses that feel that they bear an unfair burden when it comes to foreign bribery enforcement, say attorneys at MoFo.

  • Info Exchanges Must Stay Inside Now-Invisible Antitrust Lines

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    While the antitrust agencies recently withdrew long-standing enforcement policy statements for being "overly permissive" on information exchanges, we should not assume that all information exchanges are inherently suspect — they are still permissible if carefully constructed and vigorously managed, say attorneys at Nelson Mullins.

  • Twitter Legal Fees Suit Offers Crash Course In Billing Ethics

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    X Corp.'s suit alleging that Wachtell grossly inflated its fees in the final days of Elon Musk’s Twitter acquisition provides a case study in how firms should protect their reputations by hewing to ethical billing practices and the high standards for professional conduct that govern attorney-client relationships, says Lourdes Fuentes at Karta Legal.

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