Securities

  • August 14, 2025

    Energy Co. Can't Avoid 401(k) Forfeiture, Fee Fight

    A Florida federal judge refused Thursday to toss a proposed class action against NextEra Energy from an employee 401(k) participant who alleged plan forfeitures were misspent and that a recordkeeper illegally profited off retirement plan earnings, opening discovery on allegations that the conduct violated federal benefits law.

  • August 14, 2025

    Armistice Capital Beats Derivative Suit In Chancery

    An Aytu Biopharma Inc. stockholder's derivative lawsuit in Delaware against Armistice Capital LLC crumbled on Thursday after a vice chancellor rejected breach of fiduciary duty, unjust enrichment, and aiding and abetting claims against the New York hedge fund.

  • August 14, 2025

    Del. Challenge To Squarespace Doc Suit Toss Moves Forward

    A Delaware vice chancellor on Thursday ordered an October hearing over stockholder exceptions to a posttrial dismissal of a lawsuit for records on Squarespace Inc.'s $7.2 billion take-private deal, following objections that the ruling "would require the court to possess impossible prescience."

  • August 14, 2025

    Ponzi Scheme Trial Not Tainted By Video Depo, 7th Circ. Says

    A Seventh Circuit panel upheld the conviction and 17-year sentence of an alleged Ponzi schemer, rejecting a "host of challenges," including that he was denied his Sixth Amendment confrontation rights when the government presented a key witness's testimony through a videotaped foreign deposition neither he nor his counsel attended.

  • August 14, 2025

    Ex-Payday Lender CEO Gets 7 Years For $66M Ponzi Scheme

    The former CEO of a Miami payday loan company was sentenced Thursday to more than seven years in prison for operating a Ponzi scheme that prosecutors say fraudulently raised $66 million from more than 600 investors.

  • August 14, 2025

    Crypto Co. Slams Canadian Consultant's Unpaid Wages Claims

    Cryptocurrency startup Unicoin Inc. and its CEO have asked a New York federal judge to dismiss a former consultant's lawsuit alleging he's owed wages and coin commissions for his work facilitating the firm's Canadian presence, arguing the consultant quit last summer and has no enforceable contract.

  • August 14, 2025

    US Targets Russia-Linked Crypto Exchanges Over Illicit Flows

    The Trump administration on Thursday renewed sanctions on Russian cryptocurrency exchange Garantex and moved against its successor, Grinex, accusing the platforms of helping launder illicit transactions and shifting business to dodge earlier penalties.

  • August 14, 2025

    Purported Cartier Family Scion Denies Laundering Charges

    An Argentinian entrepreneur and professional singer with ties to the family that created jewelry giant Cartier on Thursday denied charges that he helped operate a Colombia cryptocurrency money-laundering network that assisted traffickers in their effort to repatriate $14 million of narcotics proceeds.

  • August 14, 2025

    Troutman Adds 3 More CMBS Attys From K&L Gates

    Troutman Pepper Locke LLP has announced three more additions to its commercial mortgage-backed securities team from K&L Gates LLP, saying their hires will "further fortify the firm's competitive edge in the special servicing and litigation sectors."

  • August 14, 2025

    DiDi Investors Get Partial Cert. In Ride-Hailing App IPO Suit

    A New York federal judge adopted a magistrate judge's recommendation to partially grant class certification in an investor suit alleging DiDi Global Inc., a ride-hailing business based in China, hid enterprise-threatening regulatory risks during its initial public offering in 2021.

  • August 13, 2025

    6th Circ. Clarifies Class Cert. Standard In FirstEnergy Suit

    A class of FirstEnergy investors suing in the wake of a $1 billion bribery scandal should not have been certified, the Sixth Circuit ruled Wednesday, saying the district court applied the wrong standard, but indicated the class could be recertified on remand.

  • August 13, 2025

    Dick's Sporting Goods Suit Should Be Trimmed, Judge Says

    A Pennsylvania federal judge has recommended trimming a shareholder class action that claims Dick's Sporting Goods misled investors about inventory levels and losses because of theft after the COVID-19 pandemic, finding that some of the suit's challenged statements are forward-looking and inactionable, among other things.

  • August 13, 2025

    Andreessen Horowitz Urges SEC To Craft DeFi Safe Harbor

    Venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz and crypto lobby the DeFi Education Fund penned a joint letter Wednesday, urging the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission to shield certain decentralized crypto projects from broker-dealer requirements.

  • August 13, 2025

    FINRA Fines Wells Fargo Over Muni Securities Biz Compliance

    Wells Fargo will pay $275,000 to end Financial Industry Regulatory Authority claims that the bank for years lacked a supervisory system designed to ensure that its investment services for municipal entity customers did not require it to register as a municipal adviser. 

  • August 13, 2025

    Semtech Investor Sues Brass Over Copper Goods Sales Drop

    The top brass of high-performance semiconductor company Semtech Corp. has been hit with a shareholder derivative suit in California federal court claiming that they misled investors about the performance and sales of the company's products and failed to disclose certain issues that led to the end of the company's partnership with Nvidia.

  • August 13, 2025

    Paramount Investor Gabelli Sues Redstone, Skydance In Del.

    A fund of Paramount Global investor Mario Gabelli sued National Amusements Inc. successor Harbor Lights Entertainment, Shari Redstone and others in Delaware's Court of Chancery on Wednesday, seeking damages tied to the recently closed $8.4 billion Paramount-Skydance Media merger.

  • August 13, 2025

    Business Groups Fail To Halt Calif. Climate Reporting Rules

    The U.S. Chamber of Commerce and other business groups lost a bid to block new California state regulation requiring large companies to publicly disclose their greenhouse gas emissions and climate-related financial risks that they said violated their First Amendment rights, when a federal judge Wednesday denied them preliminary injunction.

  • August 13, 2025

    Chancery OKs $7.5M Atty Fee In $50M Lutnick Bonus Battle

    Class attorneys who secured a $50 million derivative suit settlement fully offsetting a disputed bonus paid in 2021 to former Newmark Group Inc. controller and current Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick saw their proposed 25% attorney fee cut to 15% by a Delaware vice chancellor on Wednesday.

  • August 13, 2025

    Cassava Investors Get Class Certified In Alzheimer's Drug Suit

    Investors accusing Cassava Sciences Inc. of inflating its stock price with manipulated research data of its Alzheimer's drug can proceed with their claims as a class, with the court finding the suit's named plaintiffs are adequate representatives despite Cassava's claims they were only "out to make a quick buck."

  • August 13, 2025

    Roomba-Maker Execs Sued Over Post-Amazon Deal Issues

    The top brass of iRobot Corp., maker of the Roomba robotic vacuum cleaner, have been hit with a shareholder derivative suit in New York federal court claiming they exaggerated the effectiveness of the company's restructuring plan following the abandonment of a proposed $1.7 billion merger with Amazon.

  • August 13, 2025

    SEC Settles With Ex-CFO Over $93M Real Estate Scheme

    The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission entered a settlement Wednesday with the former chief financial officer of a Miami real estate development company accused of defrauding investors out of millions, though the agency left it to the court whether to impose monetary penalties.

  • August 13, 2025

    Investment Co. Adviser Admits His Role In Fraud Scheme

    An officer of a purported investment company admitted in federal court Wednesday that he lied about working for a Chicago law firm to help fleece investors out of nearly $1 million with false promises of quick returns on high-yield bank instruments.

  • August 13, 2025

    SPAC Behind EV Maker Nikola, Shareholders Strike Settlement

    Stockholders and board members for the blank-check company that took electric-vehicle maker Nikola public said they reached a $6.3 million deal to end a Delaware Chancery Court lawsuit that accused the SPAC of misleading investors about Nikola's prospects.

  • August 13, 2025

    KinderCare Faces Investor Suit Over Pre-IPO Abuse Claims

    Early education company KinderCare Learning Companies Inc. is facing a proposed shareholder class action accusing it of misleading investors when the company went public in October 2024.

  • August 13, 2025

    BakerHostetler Hires Cooley Securities Litigation Atty

    BakerHostetler has added an experienced litigator to its white collar, investigations and securities enforcement litigation and securities and governance litigation teams in New York, bringing with him more than 25 years of BigLaw experience, including most recently with Cooley LLP.

Expert Analysis

  • Opportunities And Challenges For The Texas Stock Exchange

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    While the new Texas Stock Exchange could be an interesting alternative to the NYSE and the Nasdaq due to the state’s robust economy and the TXSE’s high-profile leadership and publicity opportunities for listings, its success as a national securities exchange may hinge on resolving questions about its regulatory and cost advantages, say attorneys at Norton Rose.

  • Energy Order Brings Risks For Lenders And Borrowers Alike

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    A recent executive order directing the attorney general to submit a report next month with recommendations for halting enforcement of state laws the administration says are hampering energy resources presents risks for lenders and borrowers using state-generated carbon credits, but proactive steps now can help insulate against adverse consequences, say attorneys at Faegre Drinker.

  • What's At Stake As Trump Admin Targets Carbon Markets

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    Trading in greenhouse gas emissions and reductions has long been touted as a way to leverage market forces to tackle climate change cost-effectively, and that theory may be put to the test amid momentous progress and fresh challenges, particularly as the Trump administration takes aim at climate initiatives, say attorneys at DLA Piper.

  • Series

    Power To The Paralegals: An Untapped Source For Biz Roles

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    Law firms looking to recruit legal business talent should consider turning to paralegals, who practice several key skills every day that prepare them to thrive in marketing and client development roles, says Vanessa Torres at Lowenstein Sandler.

  • The Legal Risks Of US Restrictions On Investments In China

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    The second Trump administration has continued to embrace a more restrictive economic policy toward China, including an ongoing review of further restrictions on the flow of U.S. capital to China, so early planning and enhanced diligence can reduce exposure to the challenges resulting from further restrictions, say attorneys at Cleary.

  • Using Federal Forum Provisions To Nix State Securities Cases

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    A California appeals court's recent decision in Bullock v. Rivian clarifies that underwriters may enforce federal forum provisions to escape state court Securities Act claims, marking progress in restoring such lawsuits to federal court and reducing the litigation costs arising from duplicative state court litigation, say attorneys at Paul Weiss.

  • Series

    Playing Poker Makes Me A Better Lawyer

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    Poker is a master class in psychology, risk management and strategic thinking, and I’m a better attorney because it has taught me to read my opponents, adapt when I’m dealt the unexpected and stay patient until I'm ready to reveal my hand, says Casey Kingsley at McCreadyLaw.

  • Does R-Squared Have A Role In Event Study Analysis?

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    With 2024 marking the second consecutive year to experience an increase in securities class action filings, determining the reliability of event study models is of utmost importance, but it's time to reconsider the traditional method of doing so, say analysts at StoneTurn Group.

  • Opinion

    Why It's Time To Retire The Efficient Market Hypothesis

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    As agentic artificial intelligence systems increasingly affect financial markets, the efficient market hypothesis no longer offers a viable foundation for legal and regulatory engagement, and a new theoretical foundation is needed, say Zachary Brenner, a student at California Western School of Law, and attorney Gary Brenner.

  • Avoiding The Risk Of Continued AI-Washing Enforcement

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    A recent action brought by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and Department of Justice, alleging a software developer defrauded investors by lying about his app’s artificial intelligence capabilities, suggests this administration will continue to target AI washing, so companies should adopt practices to mitigate enforcement risk, say attorneys at Debevoise.

  • Cos. Should Review Pay Strategies In Light Of 2025 Tariffs

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    Companies should think about what they can or should do to ensure the ongoing effectiveness of their compensation plans in light of rising material costs, reduced profit margins, market volatility and other impacts of the Trump administration’s evolving tariff regime, say attorneys at Cooley.

  • Key Aspects Of FDIC's Resolution Planning FAQ

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    The Federal Deposit Insurance Corp.'s recent FAQ on changes to its resolution plan rule ease burdensome requirements for some large institutions and exempt others from discussion of franchise components, making it easier for banks to finalize submissions before the July 1 deadline, say attorneys at Moore & Van Allen.

  • Chancery Ruling Raises Bar For Advance Notice Bylaws Suits

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    The Delaware Court of Chancery's recent ruling in Siegel v. Morse will make it more difficult for plaintiffs to successfully challenge advance notice bylaws before the emergence of an actual or threatened proxy contest, presumably reducing the occurrence of such challenges, say attorneys at Venable.

  • DOJ Memo Raises Bar For Imposition Of Corporate Monitors

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    A recently released U.S. Department of Justice memo, outlining guidance on the imposition of compliance monitors in corporate criminal cases, reflects DOJ leadership’s concerns about scope creep and business costs, but the strategies for companies to avoid a monitorship haven't changed much compared to the Biden era, says James Koukios at MoFo.

  • Series

    Law School's Missed Lessons: Becoming A Firmwide MVP

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    Though lawyers don't have a neat metric like baseball players for measuring the value they contribute to their organizations, the sooner new attorneys learn skills frequently skipped in law school — like networking, marketing, client development and case evaluation — the more valuable, and less replaceable, they will be, says Alex Barnett at DiCello Levitt.

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