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Recrafting The Jurisdictional Framework For Private Rights Of Action Under The Federal Securities Laws, Jeffrey T. Cook

American University Law Review

No abstract provided.

Recrafting The Jurisdictional Framework For Private Rights Of Action Under The Federal Securities Laws, Jeffrey T. Cook

American University Law Review

No abstract provided.

Tattlers And Trail Blazers: Attorneys' Liability For Clients' Fraud, Barbara Black

Faculty Articles and Other Publications

No abstract provided.

Bringing Coherence To Mens Rea Analysis For Securities-Related Offenses, Michael L. Seigel

UF Law Faculty Publications

This Article has demonstrated that the failure of commentators and the courts to tackle mens rea analysis head-on has resulted in lasting incoherence in the law. Unintelligible legal doctrine does not simply upset individuals who strive for elegant solutions to legal problems; it also exacts a huge, real-life toll. Juries faced with incoherent legal instructions are likely to become disillusioned about the justice system. Citizens receive inadequate guidance as to acceptable and unacceptable behavior, hampering deterrence -- particularly in the securities-law arena, where one presumably finds mostly rational actors who would be deterred by clear legal rules. Securities regulation is …

Reflections On Scienter (And The Securities Fraud Case Against Martha Stewart That Never Happened), Donald C. Langevoort

Georgetown Law Faculty Publications and Other Works

This paper considers what research in cognitive psychology and behavioral economics has to say about one of the basic "state of mind" constructs in the law of fraud: scienter. It takes a clinical approach, examining the securities fraud case that never happened against Martha Stewart. In granting a judgment of acquittal in Stewart's favor on the securities fraud charge, the court seemingly misunderstood the law of scienter, which turns on awareness rather than purpose. But that simply provides an opportunity to think about what awareness means in the context of financial transactions. From publicly available sources, interesting inferences can be …

The Next Epidemic: Bubbles And The Growth And Decay Of Securities Regulation, Erik F. Gerding

Publications

This article explores how speculative bubbles undermine the effectiveness of securities regulations and spawn epidemics of securities fraud. A brief historical survey demonstrates that stock market bubbles almost invariably coincide with epidemics of securities fraud, and provides a compelling argument that the outbreak of fraud in the Enron era did not stem merely from factors unique to the 1990s, but from the dynamics of an asset price bubble as well.

Drawing on perspectives from securities law practice and economic theory, the article argues that bubbles dilute the deterrent effect of antifraud rules and promote deregulation. Both effects alter the calculus …

Cataclysmic Liability Risk Among Big Four Auditors, Eric L. Talley

Faculty Scholarship

Since Arthur Andersen's implosion in 2002, policymakers have been encouraged with ever increasing urgency to insulate the auditing industry from legal liability. Advocates of such insulation cite many arguments, but the gravamen of their case is that the profession faces such significant risk of cataclysmic liability that its long term viability is imperiled. In this Essay, I explore the nature of these claims as a legal, theoretical, and empirical matter. Legally, it is clear that authority exists (within both state and federal law) to impose liability on auditing firms for financial fraud, and courts have been doing so sporadically for …

Reforming The Securities Class Action: On Deterrence And Its Implementation, John C. Coffee Jr.

Faculty Scholarship

Securities class actions impose enormous penalties, but they achieve little compensation and only limited deterrence. This is because of a basic circularity underlying the securities class action: When damages are imposed on the corporation, they essentially fall on diversified shareholders, thereby producing mainly pocket-shifting wealth transfers among shareholders. The current equilibrium benefits corporate insiders, insurers, and plaintiffs' attorneys, but not investors. The appropriate answer to this problem is not to abandon securities litigation, but to shift the incidence of its penalties so that, in the secondary market context, they fall less on the corporation and more on those actors who …

Accounting Fraud: Pleading Scienter Of Auditors Under The Private Securities Litigation Reform Act, Gideon Mark

ExpressO

This paper examines the current judicial approach to assessing the scienter of auditors under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act. The paper concludes that the current approach is inadequate and should be modified.

Fighting Fraud On Faith: Federal Securities Regulation And The Limits Of Disclosure, Shannon R. Selden

ExpressO

In the past ten years, Congress passed three major reform acts to address two diametrically opposed concerns: It first restrained what it believed was an excess of securities fraud litigation, then responded to an explosion of securities fraud. This Article contends that despite the competing provocations and ambitions of the reforms, they share an unwarranted adherence to the principle of disclosure as the best means to attack market malfeasance: The Article examines the basis for and consequences of that undeserved legislative fidelity. Applying behavioral economics and cultural theory to the recent legislation and its underpinnings, the Article concludes that a …

Price, Path & Pride: Third-Party Closing Opinion Practice Among U.S. Lawyers (A Preliminary Investigation), Jonathan C. Lipson

ExpressO

This article presents the first in-depth exploration of third-party closing opinions, a common but curious – and potentially troubling -- feature of U.S. business law practice. Third-party closing opinions are letters delivered at the closing of most large transactions by the attorney for one party (e.g., the borrower) to the other party (e.g., the lender) offering limited assurance that the transaction will have legal force and effect.

Hundreds, if not thousands, of legal opinions are delivered every week. Yet, lawyers often complain that they create needless risk and cost, and produce little benefit. Closing opinions thus pose a basic question: …

The Sec And Accounting, In Part Through The Eyes Of Pacioli, Matthew J. Barrett

Journal Articles

As part of a symposium marking the seventieth anniversary of the creation of the Securities and Exchange Commission, this article pulls together two threads, namely Luca Pacioli's prominence in accounting and the importance of the Management's Discussion and Analysis (MD&A) requirements that seek to give investors an opportunity to view a public company through the eyes of management, to evaluate the SEC's record on certain accounting issues. Because writers in legal journals have largely ignored Pacioli's efforts, the article begins by highlighting some of the friar's contributions to accounting precepts. The article next applies some of those precepts in a …

Realizing The Dream Of William O. Douglas: The Securities And Exchange Commission Takes Charge Of Corporate Governance, Roberta S. Karmel

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

Rules Of Or Substantive Law: Who Controls An Individual's Right To Choose A Lawyer In Today's Corporate Environment, 38 J. Marshall L. Rev. 1265 (2005), Joan Colson

UIC Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Sec At 70: Time For Retirement?, Adam C. Pritchard

Articles

The Article proceeds as follows. Part I explains the pathologies of the SEC and explores the relation between those pathologies and the SEC's status as an independent agency. Part II then outlines an alternative regulatory structure primarily situated within the executive branch. I also argue that such a relocation of authority would enhance regulatory effectiveness while simultaneously reducing the cost of excessive regulation. The Article concludes with some thoughts about the viability of my proposal.

Whistling In The Dark? Corporate Fraud, Whistleblowers, And The Implications Of The Sarbanes-Oxley Act For Employment Law, Miriam A. Cherry

Washington Law Review

Passed in 2002 in the wake of the accounting scandals that resulted in billions of dollars of lost value to shareholders, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act has as its major goal the prevention of corporate corruption. This Article analyzes the impact of section 806, the portion of the Sarbanes-Oxlcy Act that provides protections for employees who report securities fraud, and describes the effect that Sarbanes-Oxley has on existing employment law. In addition, this Article contributes to the debate over the general effectiveness of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, a topic of contention among both academics and press commentators. This Article argues that the Act …

Revisiting The Role Of The Future In Accounting Reform, Lawrence A. Cunningham

ExpressO

Overlooked in accounting-reform debate emanating from recent financial reporting scandals is the role of forward-looking disclosure inaugurated in the late 1970s and expanded throughout the 1980s and 1990s. Debate centered on whether accounting concepts developed during this period were too rule-bound. An SEC study largely resolved this debate by characterizing US GAAP as a mix of rules and principles embedded in an objectives-based accounting system. The SEC expressed a slight preference for principles over rules in future accounting standard-setting. Some see this resolution as transformative. This Article considers how it may disguise a false dichotomy likely providing false catharsis. Underappreciated …

The Securities And Exchange Commission Goes Abroad To Regulate Corporate Governance, Roberta S. Karmel

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

The Securities And Exchange Commission Goes Abroad To Regulate Corporate Governance, Roberta S. Karmel

Faculty Scholarship

No abstract provided.

A New Product For The Corporation Law Market: Audit Committee Certifications, Lawrence A. Cunningham

ExpressO

In the swirling corporate governance reforms led by SOX, the SEC, SROs and PCAOB, Delaware and other states are playing minor roles at best. State absence creates a missing arc in the evolving US corporate governance circle. The circle is drawn as follows: state corporation law charges boards of directors with managing corporations and authorizes board committees; SOX charges audit committees with tasks, including supervising external auditors; SROs require audit committee characteristics like independence and compel disclosure; PCAOB requires external auditors to evaluate audit committee effectiveness. This last step could close the circle except that auditors performing this evaluation generate …

Pslra, Slusa, And Variable Annuities: Overlooked Side Effects Of A Potent Legislative Medicine, Michael J. Borden

Mercer Law Review

This Article highlights a harmful and far-reaching unintended consequence of two major pieces of securities litigation reform legislation1 that were passed as part of the Republican party's Contract with America in the mid-1990s. These reforms were justified, in part, on the grounds that they would benefit investors by improving disclosure of financial information by corporations. However, for many aggrieved investors, the effect of the legislation was just the opposite. Because of inadequate and misleading disclosures made by life insurance companies and their registered representatives, consumers were induced to purchase inappropriate investments carrying excessive fees that reduced the value of their …

Protecting The Perception Of The Public Markets: At What Costs - The Effects Of Noisy Withdrawal On The Long Standing Attoney-Corporate Client Relationship, Todd J. Canni

St. Thomas Law Review

"Sarbanes-Oxley," this phrase has echoed in the minds of corporate attorneys for almost two years now. Over this period of time, most corporate attorneys have come to recognize the general breadth of this Act. Aside from having a basic understanding, however, do corporate attorneys know the true effects this Act and the corresponding proposal will have on the legal profession and the companies they represent? The scope of this article is concerned with just that. Specifically, this examination concerns the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission's proposed "noisy withdrawal" provision. Briefly, noisy withdrawal refers to the final measures an attorney would …

Lawyers In The Moral Maze, Mark A. Sargent

Villanova Law Review (1956 - )

No abstract provided.

Pslra, Slusa, And Defrauded Retirement Investors: Overlooked Side Effects Of A Potent Legislative Medicine, Michael J. Borden

Law Faculty Articles and Essays

This Article highlights a harmful and far-reaching unintended consequence of two major pieces of securities litigation reform legislation that were passed as part of the Republican party's Contract with America in the mid-1990s. These reforms were justified, in part, on the grounds that they would benefit investors by improving disclosure of financial information by corporations. However, for many aggrieved investors, the effect of the legislation was just the opposite. Because of inadequate and misleading disclosures made by life insurance companies and their registered representatives, consumers were induced to purchase inappropriate investments carrying excessive fees that reduced the value of their …

Whistling In The Dark? Corporate Fraud, Whistleblowers, And The Implications Of The Sarbanes-Oxley Act For Employment Law, Miriam A. Cherry

Faculty Publications

Passed in 2002 in the wake of the accounting scandals that resulted in billions of dollars of lost value to shareholders, the Sarbanes-Oxley Act has as its major goal the prevention of corporate corruption. This Article analyzes the impact of section 806, the portion of the Sarbanes-Oxlcy Act that provides protections for employees who report securities fraud, and describes the effect that Sarbanes-Oxley has on existing employment law. In addition, this Article contributes to the debate over the general effectiveness of the .Sarbanes-Oxley Act, a topic of contention among both academics and press commentators. This Article argues that the Act …

What Caused Enron? A Capsule Social And Economic History Of The 1990s, John C. Coffee Jr.

Faculty Scholarship

The sudden explosion of corporate accounting scandals and related financial irregularities that burst over the financial markets between late 2001 and the first half of 2002 – Enron, WorldCom, Tyco, Adelphia and others – raises an obvious question: Why now? What explains the concentration of financial scandals at this moment in time? Much commentary has rounded up the usual suspects and placed the blame on a decline in business morality, an increase in "infectious greed," or other similarly subjective trends that cannot be reliably measured. Although none of these possibilities can be dismissed out of hand, approaches that simply reason …

Sec Enforcement Heuristics: An Empirical Inquiry, Randall Thomas, James D. Cox

Vanderbilt Law School Faculty Publications

This Article examines the overlap between SEC securities enforcement actions and private securities fraud class actions. We begin with an overview of data concerning all SEC enforcement actions from 1997 to 2002. We find that the volume of SEC enforcement proceedings is relatively modest. We next examine the scope of the recently enacted "Fair Fund" provision that authorizes the SEC to designate civil penalties it recovers from defendants to benefit defrauded private investors. We conclude that this provision offers only limited potential relief for private investors. We complete this Part of the Article with an analysis of the serious resource …

Unfit To Serve: Permanently Barring People From Serving As Officers And Directors Of Publicly Traded Companies After The Sarbanes-Oxley Act, Philip F.S. Berg

Vanderbilt Law Review

On June 4, 2003, lifestyle guru Martha Stewart was indicted on multiple criminal and civil charges by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC or Commission). The charges, including obstruction of justice and civil insider trading, stemmed from Stewart's sale of ImClone stock shortly before the Food and Drug Administration rejected a drug produced by ImClone and sent the company's stock price tumbling. Although Stewart could face a number of serious penalties under her criminal indictment, the primary remedy sought by the SEC for her civil insider trading charges is rather uncommon-a bar from serving as a director of Martha Stewart …

Standing Up To Wall Street (And Congress), Richard W. Painter

Michigan Law Review

In 1992, Arthur Levitt co-chaired a fundraising dinner for William Clinton. The dinner raised $750,000 (p. 7). Clinton was elected President, and Levitt got the job he wanted: Chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission. Levitt, a former Chairman of the American Stock Exchange and a connected Democrat, was well qualified for the job. His, however, became a pyrrhic victory when accountants, issuers, broker-dealers, and other special interests used their own political connections to frustrate just about everything he sought to do. Levitt tells the story of his struggle against these well-funded interests in Take on the Street. One of …

"Up The Ladder" And Over: Regulating Securities Lawyers-Past, Present & Future, Theodore Sonde, F. Ryan Keith

Washington and Lee Law Review

No abstract provided.