Legal Remedies Commons^™

The Waiting Game: Who Benefits From Recovered Assets Associated With Venezuelan State Corruption? Remission As A Solution, Alejandro Rodriguez Vanzetti

FIU Law Review

The Bolivarian Republic of Venezuela (“Venezuela”) has, and continues to undergo, significant political and economic challenges stemming from government corruption. In response, the United States government has seized assets of current or former Venezuelan state officials associated with criminal wrongdoing, imposed sanctions on Nicolas Maduro’s government, and proposed legislation to combat corruption. The Department of Justice (“DOJ”) has led dozens of prosecutions against those responsible for these crimes through its use of asset forfeiture, a critical tool in the recovery of illicit proceeds. An estimated $300 billion of these assets are held in South Florida alone, with $1.5 billion identified …

Misreading Menetti: The Case Does Not Help You Avoid Liability For Your Own Fraud, Val D. Ricks

St. Mary's Law Journal

Several decades ago, an incorrect legal idea surfaced in Texas jurisprudence: that business entity actors are immune from liability for fraud that they themselves commit, as if the entity is solely responsible. Though the Supreme Court of Texas has rejected that result several times, it keeps coming back. The most recent manifestation is as a construction of Texas’s unique veil-piercing statute. Many lawyers have suggested that this view of the veil-piercing statute originated in Menetti v. Chavers, a San Antonio Court of Appeals case decided in 1998. Menetti has in fact played a prominent role in the movement to …

Victim V. Victim Restitution: The Commingling Fictions, Andrew Kull

St. Mary's Law Journal

Abstract forthcoming.

The Uncertain Status Of The Manifest Disregard Standard One Decade After Hall Street, Stuart M. Boyarsky

Dickinson Law Review (2017-Present)

The Federal Arbitration Act (FAA) enables parties to obtain quick and final resolution to disputes without incurring the costs, delays, and occasional publicity of litigation. Indeed, section 10 of the FAA enumerates four specific grounds on which courts may vacate arbitral awards: corruption, fraud, impartiality, and misconduct or incompetence. Yet over the past 60 years, a debate has raged over the existence of an additional ground: the arbitrator’s manifest disregard of the law.

The Supreme Court first enounced this standard in dicta in its 1953 decision in Wilko v. Swan. Over next four decades, every federal circuit court slowly …

Rape By Fraud: Eluding Washington Rape Statutes, Michael Mullen

Seattle University Law Review

Existing Washington law does not sufficiently safeguard its citizens from “rape by fraud,” an action whereby a person obtains sexual consent and has sexual intercourse of any type by fraud, deception, misrepresentation, or impersonation. Rape by fraud is a form of sexual predation not always prosecutable under existing Washington law. In recent years, twelve states have adopted expanded rape by fraud statutory provisions. Presently, Washington’s rape statutes lack the expansive rape by fraud statutory language adopted by these twelve states. A recent sexual scam in Seattle has revealed holes in Washington’s rape statutes. This Note examines the history of rape …

Consumers, Sellers-Advisors, And The Psychology Of Trust, Kelli Alces Williams, Justin Sevier

Scholarly Publications

Every day, consumers ask sellers for advice. Because they do not or cannot know better, consumers rely on that advice in making financial decisions of varying significance. Sellers, motivated by strong and often conflicting self-interests, are well-positioned to lead consumers to make decisions that are profitable for sellers and may be harmful to the consumers themselves. Short of imposing fraud liability in extreme situations, the law neither protects the trust consumers place in “seller-advisors,” nor alerts them to the incentives motivating the advice that sellers give. This Article makes several contributions to the literature. First, it identifies and defines the …

Individual Accountability For Corporate Crime, Gregory Gilchrist

Georgia State University Law Review

Corporate crime is too often addressed by fining the corporation, leaving the real people who committed the crime facing no consequence at all. This failure to hold individuals accountable in cases of corporate malfeasance generates an accountability gap that undermines deterrence and introduces expressive costs. Facing heightened criticism of this trend, then-Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates issued a policy designed to generate prosecutions of real people in cases of corporate wrongdoing. The policy reflects a strong and continuing demand for more prosecutions of individuals in the corporate context.

This Article contends that the effort to introduce accountability by increasing prosecutions …

The Availability Of Benefit Of The Bargain Expectancy-Based Damages For Buyers Defrauded In California Real Estate Transactions, Laurence A. Steckman, Robert E. Conner, Kris Steckman Taylor

Touro Law Review

No abstract provided.

Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith, Inc. V. Curran: Establishing An Implied Private Right Of Action Under The Commodity Exchange Act, Howard E. Hamann

Pepperdine Law Review

In the case of Merrill Lynch, Pierce, Fenner & Smith, Inc. v. Curran, the United States Supreme Court held that there is an implied private right of action under the Commodity Exchange Act, as amended. As a result of this holding, a private party may maintain an action for damages caused by a violation of the Commodity Exchange Act. In this article, the author examines the Supreme Court's analysis and explores the future impact of the decision in light of the role the judiciary has in legislative matters.

Righting Others' Wrongs: A Critical Analysis Of Clawback Suits In The Wake Of Madoff-Type Ponzi Schemes And Other Financial Frauds, Amy Sepinwall

Amy J. Sepinwall

In a typical Ponzi scheme, early investors earn “profits” not through any legitimate investment activity on the part of the Ponzi scheme operator; instead the operator simply transfers money that later investors deposit to the earlier investors who seek redemptions. As such, when the scheme goes bust, as it must, the Ponzi scheme operator will not have enough money to cover all of the investors’ deposits, let alone the earnings on those deposits that the investors thought they were owed. Should the scheme’s winners – i.e., those who withdrew more money than they deposited – be compelled to return their …

Investors And Employees As Relief Defendants In Investment Fraud Receiverships: Promoting Efficiency By Following The Plain Meaning Of "Legitimate Claim Or Ownership Interest", Jared A. Wilkerson

W&M Law Student Publications

Relief defendants are nominal, innocent parties who hold funds traceable to the receivership but have no legitimate claim or ownership interest in them. These nominal parties, as opposed to full or primary defendants, have no cause of action asserted against them, and if they show no legitimate claim to the funds traced to the receivership, the funds are disgorged — generally at summary judgment. This seemingly simple relief defendant tool is used by receivers and regulatory agencies to quickly recover receivership funds for ultimate distribution to creditors. Recently, however, conflict has arisen in federal courts concerning the meaning of “legitimate …

The Re-Invention Of Adoption Law: A Reflection, Diane B. Kunz

NYLS Law Review

No abstract provided.

Torts, Frederick J. Moreau

Cal Law Trends and Developments

No abstract provided.

Teamsters Local 445 Freight Division Pension Fund V. Dynex Capital Inc., Erica E. Bonnett

NYLS Law Review

No abstract provided.

The Investor Compensation Fund, Alicia J. Davis

Articles

The prevailing view among securities regulation scholars is that compensating victims of secondary market securities fraud is inefficient. As the theory goes, diversified investors are as likely to be on the gaining side of a transaction tainted by fraud as the losing side. Therefore, such investors should have no expected net losses from fraud because their expected losses will be matched by expected gains. This Article argues that this view is flawed; even diversified investors can suffer substantial losses from fraud, presenting a compelling case for compensation. The interest in compensation, however, should be advanced by better means than are …

Reassessing Damages In Securities Fraud Class Actions, Elizabeth C. Burch

ExpressO

No coherent doctrinal statement exists for calculating open-market damages for securities fraud class actions. Instead, courts have tried in vain to fashion common-law deceit and misrepresentation remedies to fit open-market fraud. The result is a relatively ineffective system with a hallmark feature: unpredictable damage awards. This poses a significant fraud deterrence problem from both a practical and a theoretical standpoint.

In 2005, the Supreme Court had the opportunity to clarify open-market damage principles and to facilitate earlier dismissal of cases without compensable economic losses. Instead, in Dura Pharmaceuticals v. Broudo, it further confused the damage issue by (1) perpetuating the …

The Logical Structure Of Fraudulent Transfers And Equitable Subordination, David Gray Carlson

William & Mary Law Review

No abstract provided.

Heartbalm Statutes And Deceit Actions, Michigan Law Review

Michigan Law Review

This Note considers whether actions in deceit based on fraudulent marriage promises should be deemed barred by the heartbalm statutes. It determines that they should not. Part I examines the policies and arguments against the common law breach of promise to marry action that are embodied in the heartbalm statutes and looks at the limits courts have placed on the reach of the statutes. Part II re-examines the deceit action in light of the purposes of the heartbalm acts and their intended scope, as well as in light of criticism of the action by the courts and commentators. In particular, …

Liability For Misleading Statements Under Section 11, Ted J. Fiflis

Publications

No abstract provided.

Proof Of Scienter Necessary In A Private Suit Under Sec Anti-Fraud Rule 10b-5, Michigan Law Review

Michigan Law Review

Of the vast amounts of statutory and quasi-statutory material governing the securities business, the Securities and Exchange Commission's rule 10b-51 has potentially the greatest direct importance to the largest number of people. While several provisions in the government's regulatory scheme set more or less specific standards of conduct for securities issuers, broker-dealers, or corporate insiders, the anti-fraud provisions of rule 10b-5 apply to all persons directly or indirectly connected with any sale or purchase of securities transacted through a facility of interstate commerce, the mails, or on a national exchange. In its three clauses, rule 10b-5 forbids any person (1) …

Damages In Fraud Actions, Howard M. Rossen, Howard H. Fairweather

Cleveland State Law Review

Two distinct legal theories have been developed in determining the amount of damages to be awarded in an action for fraud and deceit. The majority view is the "benefit-of-the-bargain" rule (also known as the "warranty rule"), and the minority view is known as the "tort rule" (or more commonly, the "out-of-pocket" rule). Both rules have limited use. In Hines v. Brode the California court made it clear that the two rules should be applied only where a contract is fully executed or where the plaintiff stands on his contract and has not rescinded it. The rationale behind this holding is …

Limitation Of Actions- Substantive And Remedial Statutes - Extension Of Statutory Period For Fraud, Max H. Bergman S.Ed.

Michigan Law Review

Plaintiff brought an action under the Federal Employers' Liability Act to recover damages from the defendant employer for an industrial disease allegedly contracted more than three years prior to bringing suit. Plaintiff alleged that defendant misrepresented the time within which this action could be brought and thereby tolled the three-year statute of limitations in the FELA. Held, defendant's motion to dismiss granted. The time limitation is an integral part of the statute creating a substantive right and is not extended by fraud or misrepresentation. Glus v. Brooklyn Eastern District Terminal, (S.D. N.Y. 1957) 154 F. Supp. 863.

Contracts - Damages - Punitive Damages Awarded For Breach Accompanied By Fraudulent Act, Theodore G. Koerner

Michigan Law Review

Defendants contracted to purchase a crop of alfalfa from plaintiff, harvesting and processing to be done by defendants and payment to be ascertained according to the processed weight of the alfalfa. When defendants harvested the entire crop but failed to pay for the major part of it, plaintiff brought action for breach of contract. In addition to the non-payment, plaintiff alleged fraud on defendants' part in falsifying weight records and in otherwise scheming to cheat and defraud him. On defendants' appeal from a judgment including both compensatory and punitive damages, held, affirmed. Although punitive damages are not ordinarily recoverable …

Restitution - Fraud - Prospective Vendee's Rights Against Broker, Stephen C. Bransdorfer S.Ed.

Michigan Law Review

Defendant was retained as a real estate agent by the vendor. He listed the vendor's eighty acres and buildings for sale. Plaintiff, a prospective purchaser, offered $7,000 for the property. Defendant failed to transmit this offer to the vendor and, instead, fraudulently caused the vendor to convey to two strawmen, as purported purchasers, for $6,500. After the defendant had falsely told the plaintiff that the latter's offer for the whole tract had been rejected, plaintiff purchased seventeen acres, including the buildings, for $6,000, an admittedly fair price. The strawmen conveyed the remaining sixty-three acres to the defendant's son, defendant giving …

Taxation - Federal Income Tax - Punitive Damages And Recovered "Insider's Profits" Taxable As Income, Alice Austin S.Ed.

Michigan Law Review

In previous litigation one of the defendant taxpayers received punitive damages for fraud practiced upon it and both received treble damages for injuries to business caused by conduct in violation of the federal antitrust laws. The court of appeals affirmed the Tax Court's rulings that these receipts were not taxable as gross income. On certiorari to the Supreme Court, held, reversed. Money received as punitive awards is includible in gross income under section 22 (a), I.R.C. (1939). Commissioner v. Glenshaw Glass Co. and William Goldman Theatres, Inc., 348 U.S. 426, 75 S.Ct. 473 (1955).

Wills And Administration - Jurisdiction Over The Probate Of Lost Or Destroyed Wills

Michigan Law Review

Under Mich. Comp. Laws (1929), sec. 15547, a will lost, suppressed or destroyed may be admitted to probate upon its being established in a prescribed manner in the probate court. And under sec. 15543 no will is effectual to pass title to property unless probated as required by law. Plaintiff coal company, apparently under the direction of its manager, King, filed a bill of interpleader for a judicial determination as to whether it should pay rent as lessee of certain property to the administrator of the estate of the deceased lessor, or to King, who claimed as devisee of the …

Anticipatory Repudiation Of Contracts And Necessity Of Election, L. Vold

Michigan Law Review

Where a breach of contract takes place several courses of conduct are normally open to the aggrieved promisee. He may bring an action for damages. He often may rescind for the breach. He sometimes may sue for specific performance. He may accept later performance on account. He may try to persuade the defaulting party to live up to the contract. He may for the time being ignore both the contract and the breach. If he follows certain of these courses of conduct others may thereby become impossible. He thus has an election of remedies, a choosing between inconsistent courses of …

Contracts Of Sale Of Merchandise--Fraud On The Vendor, Levi T. Griffin

Articles

This is an interesting topic to every jobbing house, and to every attorney concerned with mercantile collections. The law is pretty well settled on the general subject and the Treatises on Sales are plentiful. Among the best is that of Mr. Benjamin. Tiffany on Sales of the Hornbrook Series recently issued assumes also to state briefly the principles which control in these cases. At large commercial and metropolitan points, and among lawyers who have occasion to often deal with this question, there is perhaps not much difficulty in arriving at correct conclusions, and promptly enforcing the rights of a defrauded …

Contracts Of Sale Of Merchandise--Fraud On The Vendor, Levi T. Griffin

Articles

In a former article (May number JOURNAL) fraud in contemplation of law, or legal fraud was considered. It was contended that a false representation, though honestly made and believed to be true, afforded sufficient ground to the vendor for rescinding a con- tract of sale. We now propose to briefly consider character of statements made, with some reference also to representations made to commercial agencies. It may be regarded as within the common knowledge of the profession, that the false representation must be the assertion of a fact, and usually of an existing fact, although the fact may depend upon …