SEC Charges Trinity Capital Corporation with Fraud

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced on September 28, 2015 that Trinity Capital Corporation and its wholly-owned subsidiary, Los Alamos National Bank, have agreed to pay $1.5 million to settle accounting fraud charges. An SEC investigation found… Read More

SEC Charges Six in Securities Fraud Scheme

On September 24, 2015 the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) charged six men, including a father and three sons, with securities fraud associated with Gerova Financial Group Ltd., whose shares once traded on the New York Stock Exchange. In a parallel… Read More

SEC Settles Aiding and Abetting Charges Against Joseph Apuzzo

On September 8, 2015, Judge Alvin Thompson of the U.S. District Court for the District of Connecticut entered a judgment against Joseph Apuzzo, former Chief Financial Officer of Terex Corporation. Apuzzo consented, without admitting or denying the allegations… Read More

Consultant Charged With Insider Trading

On September 23, 2015, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) charged a consultant and his friend with insider trading in the options of P.F. Chang’s China Bistro based on nonpublic information about an impending acquisition offer. The SEC… Read More

SEC Charges Bank Analyst Ashish Aggarwal With Insider Trading

On August 25th, 2015, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) charged a former investment bank analyst with illegally tipping his close friend with confidential information about clients involved in impending mergers and acquisitions of technology companies. The SEC… Read More

SEC Freezes Profits From Avon Stock Manipulation Scheme

On June 4, 2015, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced an emergency asset freeze of two U.S. brokerage accounts connected to schemes to manipulate the securities of Avon and other stocks, thwarting any ability for fraudsters to cash… Read More

SEC Charges Vadda Energy Corporation With Oil And Gas Fraud

On April 10, 2015, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) charged Mieka Energy Corporation, and its founder and president Daro Ray Blankenship, with fraudulently offering oil and gas investments. Two of Mieka’s salesmen, Robert William Myers, Jr. and… Read More

SEC Obtains Officer-Director and Penny Stock Bar Against Michael Cohen

  On March 6, 2015, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) announced that the United States District Court of New Jersey entered a judgment against Michael M. Cohen. Cohen received a lifetime officer-director bar, lifetime penny stock bar and… Read More

SEC Settles Charges Against Joseph Saranello

On December 17, 2014, the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”)  announced settled charges against Joseph Saranello who participated in a pump-and-dump scheme involving the stock of Rudy Nutrition. The SEC previously charged thirteen other individuals in the… Read More

Executives of Assisted Living Concepts Charged with Fraud

Securities Law Blog On December 3, 2014, the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) announced securities fraud charges against Laurie Bebo and John Buono two executives at an assisted living facility accused of listing fake occupants to meet… Read More

SEC Judgment Entered Against James Crane CFO of Subaye

On October 20, 2014, the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) announced a final judgment, in an enforcement action filed by the SEC in May 2013, against James Crane, the former Chief Financial Officer of Subaye, Inc., a… Read More

What are Convertible Securities? l Securities Lawyer 101

Securities Lawyer 101 Blog A “convertible security” is often structured as a bond, note, preferred stock, or a wraparound agreement that results in the conversion of the debt obligation into common stock.  The holder of the convertible security or… Read More

SEC Charges CEO & CFO with Sarbanes-Oxley Violations

Securities Lawyer 101 Blog On July 31, 2014, the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) announced charges against Marc Sherman, the CEO and Edward Cummings, the CFO of a Florida-based computer equipment company for misrepresenting to external auditors… Read More

SEC Charges Lawbreakers Who Secretly Ran Microcap Company

Posted by Securities Lawyer 101 Blog On July 16, 2014, the Securities and Exchange Commission announced SEC charges against James E. Cohen and Joseph Corazzi who secretly controlled Natural Blue Resources including the operational and management decisions of… Read More

SEC Reinstates Richard Hylland, CPA to Practice Before the Commission

Securities Lawyer 101 Blog On June 11, 2014, the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) announced that it had reinstated Richard Hylland, CPA to practice before the SEC. On July 16, 2007, Richard Hylland, CPA (“Hylland”) was suspended… Read More

SEC Charges John Bensen & DGSE Companies By: Brenda Hamilton Attorney

Securities Lawyer 101 Blog On May 27, 2014, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) announced accounting fraud charges against a Dallas-based company and its former chief financial officer for manipulating its inventory accounts.   The SEC alleges that John… Read More

SEC Charges Transfer Agent, IST Shareholder Services By: Brenda Hamilton Attorney

Securities Lawyer 101 Blog On May 28, 2014, the SEC announced fraud charges and an emergency asset freeze against IST Shareholder Services, a transfer agent and its owner, Robert Pearson whose misappropriation scheme was discovered during an SEC examination…. Read More

SEC Charges Jeffrey Berkowitz & Others By: Brenda Hamilton Attorney

Securities Lawyer 101 Blog On May 24, 2014, the Securities and Exchange Commission announced the latest in a series of cases against microcap companies, officers, and promoters arising out of a joint law enforcement investigation to unearth penny… Read More

What are the OTC Markets Reporting Requirements?

Securities Lawyer 101 Blog Unlike securities listed on stock exchanges such as NASDAQ or the NYSE, securities may trade through the OTC Markets interdealer quotation system whether they are a Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) reporting issuer or not…. Read More

SEC Charges College Professor, Gonul Colak, in Naked Short Selling Scheme

Securities Lawyer 101 Blog On January 31, 2014, the Securities and Exchange Commission charged two Florida college professors with perpetrating a complex naked short selling scheme for more than $400,000 in illicit profits.

SEC Charges Tibor Klein and Michael Shechtman With Insider Trading

Securities Lawyer 101 Blog Continuing its crackdown on violators of insider trading laws, on September 20, 2013 the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) charged Tibor Klein, president of Klein Financial Services, with illegal insider trading in his own… Read More

OTC Markets Issuer Reporting Standards

Securities Law 101 Blog Securities listed on stock exchanges such as NASDAQ or the NYSE, securities may trade through the OTC Markets interdealer quotation system whether they are Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) reporting issuer or not. There are three… Read More

OTC Markets Eliminates Quarterly Legal Opinions For OTC Pink Market

Securities Lawyer 101 Blog On January 3, 2013, OTC Markets revised its disclosure requirements for issuers quoted on OTC Markets’ “OTC Pink Current Information” tier. As set forth in our January 4, 2013 blog post, these revisions reduced the… Read More

OTC Markets Increases Disclosure Requirements for OTC Pink Issuers

Securities Lawyer 101 Blog On January 3, 2013, the OTC Markets revised its disclosure requirements for issuers quoted with an OTC Markets “OTC Pink Current” tier. These revisions increase current events disclosures for a laundry list of corporate events… Read More

BP to Pay $525 Million to SEC – Securities Lawyer 101 – Go Public Blog

Securities Lawyer 101 Blog On November 15, 2012, the Securities and Exchange Commission charged BP p.l.c. with misleading investors by significantly understating the flow rate while its Deepwater Horizon oil rig was gushing into the Gulf of Mexico in 2010…. Read More

Benefits of Direct Public Offerings

While going public offers many benefits, it also comes with risks and a large number of regulations with which issuers must become familiar. Despite the risks, the U.S. capital markets remain one of the most attractive sources of… Read More

Tips For Going Public With A Direct Public Offering

More and more issuers going public opt for a direct public offering. Unlike an Initial Public Offering (IPO), in a direct public offering, the issuer sells shares of its stock directly to investors rather than through an underwriter. Going public transactions using a direct public… Read More

Ross Mandell Begins a New Life

Ross Mandell, a former broker and the owner of Sky Capital LLC and Sky Capital Holdings Ltd. was released from federal home confinement in early January of this year. He isn’t letting grass grow under his feet: he… Read More

What are SEC Periodic Reporting Requirements? Securities Lawyer 101

Companies become subject to the SEC’s periodic reporting requirements in several ways, including by filing a registration under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended or pursuant to the  Securities Exchange Act of 1934. The SEC’s periodic reporting… Read More

Reg A+ Securities Offerings and FAST Act

Prospective For Underwriters & Broker-Dealers: Due Diligence Considerations Unlike traditional Initial Public Offerings (“IPOs”), there is no potential liability for issuers under Section 11 of the Securities Act in connection with Regulation A+ offerings. Sellers in Regulation A+… Read More