On June 21, 2018, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that administrative law judges (ALJs) at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) had been improperly appointed because they qualified as “Officers of the United States” under the “Appointments Clause” of
June 2018
New York Highest Court Imposes Three Year Limitations on State Attorney General Securities Actions
On June 12, 2018, New York’s highest court issued a ruling that a three year statute of limitations, not the six year statute applicable to fraud claims, applies to claims brought under New York’s Martin Act. People v. Credit Suisse …
Parity in sentencing for insider trading: AMF v. Beauchamp, 2018 QCCQ 3604
In a recent decision, AMF v. Beauchamp, Délisle J. of the Quebec Court, Criminal and Penal Chamber, refused to follow the request of the Quebec securities regulator, the Autorité des marchés financiers (AMF), that a prison…
The Importance of Materiality in Secondary Market Misrepresentation Claims: Paniccia v. MDC Partners Inc. Securities Class Action
In the recent decision of Paniccia v MDC Partners Inc., Perell J. refused to grant leave to proceed with a putative secondary market securities class action under Part XXIII.1 of the Ontario Securities Act (OSA) against…
Alberta Securities Commission Policy 15-601: Credit for Exemplary Cooperation in Enforcement Matters – New Provision for No-Contest Settlement Agreements
On October 25, 2017, we wrote about the Alberta Securities Commission’s (ASC) new Policy 15-601 which “explains the use of discretion by ASC staff when considering the appropriate enforcement action and assessing the appropriate sanction for misconduct.” A…
US Supreme Court puts an end to untimely piggyback class actions
Companies confronting serial class actions won much needed relief from the US Supreme Court yesterday, in a decision that held that a class action tolls statutes of limitations only for putative class members’ individual claims, and not for later-filed class…