In Mallat c. Autorité des marchés financiers de France, 2018 QCCS 3867, Cohen J. granted a motion to dismiss an action brought by three Ubisoft executives (Plaintiffs) against the Autorité des marchés financiers de France (AMFF
Cross-border issues
SEC to Resume Administrative Law Proceedings Following Supreme Court Ruling
In response to the U.S. Supreme Court’s June 21, 2018 decision in Lucia v. SEC, No. 17-130, holding that administrative law judges (ALJs) at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) had been improperly appointed because they had been…
The Importance of Cooperation Among Interjurisdictional Securities Regulators: United States Securities and Exchange Commission v. Autorité des marchés financiers, 2018 QCCQ 4417
In the recent decision of United States Securities and Exchange Commission v. Autorité des marchés financiers, 2018 QCCQ 4417, the Quebec Court, Criminal and Penal Chamber held that the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)…
Copy and Paste Securities Fraud? The U.S. Supreme Court to Decide
Last month, the U.S. Supreme Court granted certiorari to hear a case where an investment banker copied and pasted misstatements from his boss into emails that, at his boss’s request, he sent to prospective debenture purchasers. In Lorenzo v. Securities …
U.S. Supreme Court Holds SEC Administrative Law Judges Improperly Appointed
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…
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 …
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…
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…
U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission Proposes “Best Interest” Standard for Retail Broker Dealers
On April 18, 2018, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) announced proposed rules that would require broker-dealers to act in the best interests of their retail clients when recommending investments. The SEC opened the proposed rules to a 90…
Federal court holds that CFTC can regulate virtual currencies as commodities
On March 6, 2018, in a fraud proceeding involving a virtual currency product, a New York federal court held that virtual currencies can be regulated by the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC) as commodities. Commodity Futures Trading Commission v. McDonnell…