The Presidential Blame Game
When something around you breaks, there is one universal response: “I didn’t do it.” Whether you are a child, a businessman, a criminal, or a presidential candidate, you will most likely be inclined to deny everything and to make counter-accusations. We are obsessed with blame, particularly with avoiding it…
The Patent Bomb: Fallout From Apple v. Samsung
Apple is the world’s largest and most valuable technology company. Samsung is a close second. When the two behemoths entered the ring to settle their patent disputes with their legal fists, it was clear that the blows could be devastating. However, it is not only Samsung and Apple who will feel the bruises. The verdict [...]
Summer Suits
Although summertime is normally characterized by beaches and swim suits, this past June has seen a number of significant developments in lawsuits concerning big names in the financial industry. While the rest of us have been enjoying the sunshine, the United States government has continued to work tirelessly to pursue suits against insider trading and [...]
Up to BATS: An IPO Swing and a Miss
There is nothing more embarrassing for a baseball player than an unforced error – especially when that error consists of tripping over your own feet, falling on your face, and getting hit in the back of the head by the ball you were supposed to catch easily. This is the essence of what happened to [...]
POSTED IN Capital Markets
Robert Stanford’s Conviction: Repercussions and the #twitterdefense
Robert Allen Stanford is a name that will be forever loathed along with the likes of Bernie Madoff, as the man behind one of the most extravagant Ponzi schemes in history. While Mr. Stanford’s $7 billion scheme pales in comparison to the $65 billion fraud of Mr. Madoff, both cases have generated a great deal [...]
Greed is Not Good: FBI Steps Up Attack on Insider Trading
In the wake of the recent financial debacle, the SEC and the FBI have tried a number of tactics to hold accountable those responsible and to curb continuing abuses. Despite new regulations, harsher penalties, and extensive litigation, the securities market is still plagued by rampant disregard for the rules. A report from the FBI suggests [...]
Settling Up with Bank of America
It is no secret that Bank of America (“BofA”) has faced numerous lawsuits concerning its role in the financial crises. From liability concerning bad mortgages to allegations of securities fraud, BofA’s reputation and bottom line has paid a high price for its actions. And the bad news just keeps coming. Recently, important developments in two [...]
To Not Admit or To Not Deny, That is the Question: Accountability and the Proposed Citigroup Settlement
What does it mean to neither admit nor deny allegations? In one of the financial industry’s most recent magic tricks, banks have figured out how to buy “innocence” from the Securities Exchange Commission through settlement. On Wednesday, November 9th, 2011, Southern District of New York Judge Jed S. Rakoff held an hour long hearing to [...]
The Hurt Volcker: Diffusing Proprietary Trading
The ongoing battle between regulators and the financial industry took a significant step forward last week, as the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (“FDIC”), the Federal Reserve, and the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) all unanimously approved an initial version of a regulation designed to prevent banks from trading for their own profit. This proposal, known [...]
Featured Video
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Eugene P. and Delia S. Murphy Conference on Corporate Law
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Representation Without Accountability?
- Business Law Practitioners Series – Fall 2011
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The Philosophy and Practice of Disclosure
- BLPS – Rory Cutaia ’85
- The Looming Problems of The Bureau of Consumer Financial Protection
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Financial Reform Legislation: There Ought To Be A Law, But Is This It?
Highlights From Volume 18 Book I
THE BEHAVIORAL PARADOX: WHY INVESTOR IRRATIONALITY CALLS FOR LIGHTER AND SIMPLER FINANCIAL REGULATION
It is widely believed that behavioral economics justifies more intrusive regulation of financial markets, because people are not fully rational and need to be protected from their quirks. This Article challenges that belief. Firstly, insofar as people can be helped to make better choices, that goal can usually be achieved through light-touch regulations. Secondly, faulty [...]
DEMANDING SUBSTANCE OR FORM? THE SEC’S PLAIN ENGLISH HANDBOOK AS A BASIS FOR SECURITIES VIOLATIONS
In 1998, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC” or “Commission”) released a style manual titled “The Plain English Handbook.” The culmination of a drive by its Chairman, Arthur Levitt, the Handbook drew upon the rules of grammar, best industry practice, and even the support of billionaire Warren Buffett in calling for a layman’s [...]
FULL OF HOT AIR? EVALUATING THE AIRGAS COURT’S RESERVATIONS ABOUT SHAREHOLDERS’ SHORT-TERM AND LONGTERM INTERESTS IN TAKEOVERS
This Note explores the incentives and preferences of shareholders in takeovers. This analysis is conducted in the context of the Delaware Chancery Court’s February 2011 decision in Air Products & Chemicals v. Airgas. In that case, the court’s decision largely turned on whether certain short-term and long-term shareholders have different preferences and incentives in takeovers. [...]
News & Events
- Can Woman Have It All? A Live Webcast with Anne-Marie Slaughter (4/24/2013)
- 13th Annual A.A. Sommer, Jr. Lecture on Corporate, Securities & Financial Law (4/18/2013)
- 13th Annual A.A. Sommer, Jr. Lecture on Corporate, Securities & Financial Law (4/18/2013)
- International In-House Counsel Breakfast Forum Series for Students (4/18/2013)
- Business Law Practitioners Series for students (4/16/2013)
- Fordham Corporate Center