Lessons Learned from the SEC’s Order in the Yahoo! Data Breach Enforcement Action
5/22/18
By: Jennifer Lee
On April 24, 2018, the SEC issued an order in the enforcement action against Altaba Inc., formerly Yahoo! Inc., and imposed a $35 million fine relating to the 2014 data breach which affected more than 500 million …
DOL Fiduciary Rule Suffers a Slow Death
5/15/18
By: Ted Peters
In 2016, the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) promulgated a set of rules and regulations now infamously referred to as the “Fiduciary Rule.” After multiple criticism and legal challenges, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeal struck down …
New FINRA Proposals for High Risk Brokers
5/4/18
By: Theodore C. Peters
On April 30, 2018, FINRA published Regulatory Notice 18-16, captioned “High-Risk Brokers,” which seeks comment on proposed rule amendments that would place further restrictions on not only high-risk brokers, but also the member firms that …
Yahoo Fined $35M for Delay in Disclosing 2014 Cyberattack
4/30/18
By: Theodore C. Peters
On April 24, 2018, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission hit Altaba, Inc. (formerly known as Yahoo) with a $35 million fine. The penalty stems from Yahoo’s failure to disclose a 2014 cyberattack until 2016, even …
SEC Fiduciary Rules Proceeds on Split Vote
4/19/18
By: Theodore C. Peters
The Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) conducted a public hearing on April 18, 2018 to address a series of SEC proposals governing securities professionals. Recall that the Department of Labor previously sought to promulgate a “fiduciary …
Has Fiduciary Rule Suffered a Fatal Blow?
4/4/18
By: Theodore C. Peters
The Employee Retirement Income Security Act of 1974 (“ERISA”) defined a “fiduciary” as someone who provides investment advice for a fee. The following year, the U.S. Department of Labor (“DOL”) promulgated regulations that provided a five-part …
Breaking News: U.S. Supreme Court Rules that State Courts Maintain Jurisdiction Over Certain Securities Class Actions Pursued Under Federal Law
3/20/18
By: Theodore C. Peters
For years, litigants have battled over whether and to what extent state courts have concurrent jurisdiction over securities class actions brought under the Securities Act of 1933. The 1933 Act was enacted during the Great Depression …
FINRA’s Senior Protection Rules Now Effective
2/7/18
By: Theodore C. Peters
In 2007, FINRA issued Regulatory Notice 07-43, which served as a “reminder” that member firms and registered persons had a heightened obligation to senior investors. At that time, NASD Rule 2310 required that in recommending …
Is Virtual Currency Here To Stay?
11/15/17
By: Matthew S. Jones
With the growing interest in Bitcoin, Ethereum, and Litecoin, it was only a matter of time the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) and Internal Revenue Service (“IRS”) weighed in on the legality of such “cryptocurrency”. …
Disclose! Disclose! Disclose! Says the S.E.C. to a Municipal Advisor
3/28/16
By: John Goselin and Ze’eva Kushner Banks
Earlier this month, the Securities and Exchange Commission announced its first ever enforcement proceeding for breach of fiduciary duty for municipal advisors created by the Dodd-Frank Act of 2010. On March 15, 2016, …
S.E.C. Smacks CFO and CAO for Inadequate Internal Controls
3/23/16
By: John Goselin and Ze’eva Kushner Banks
On March 10, 2016, the Securities and Exchange Commission announced a settlement with Texas-based oil company Magnum Hunter Resources Corporation, its former chief financial officer and its former chief accounting officer arising from …
SEC Pays First Whistleblower Under Dodd-Frank
8/23/12
By: Ben Mathis
The SEC announced that it has paid $50,000 in the first whistleblower bounty. This program is a year old program and was authorized by the Dodd-Frank financial reform act. Is it the first of more to come? …