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Financial Services

  • Defended investment bank in $125 million claim brought in federal court which ended in judgment for Defendants on all counts.
  • Represented broker-dealer in an investigation of its alleged market timing of mutual funds that involved numerous agencies and the termination of ten employees: agencies included the Massachusetts Securities Division, the SEC, the New Jersey Attorney General’s Office, the New York Attorney General’s Office, the New York Stock Exchange, the National Association of Securities Dealers, Inc., and the DOJ.
  • Representing Credit Suisse in various investigations and inquiries by regulatory agencies (CFTC), SROs (NFA and FINRA) and various exchanges including Swap Execution Facilities (SEFs) (CME, ICE, Bloomberg).
  • Representing an FCM in ongoing litigation with insurers over their denial of coverage for $141 million in losses caused by a rogue employee’s unlawful commodity futures trades.
  • Representing a prominent investment bank and futures commission merchant in an investigation by the division of enforcement of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission regarding the purported failure to properly report certain swap data to the firm’s designated swap data repository.
  • Represented a hedge fund trader targeted in a CME investigation into alleged “spoofing,” or the entering of bids with the intent to cancel before execution, a practice made illegal under the Dodd-Frank Act, and one which has come under increased scrutiny under CME anti-disruptive trading rules. Working with a massive volume of electronic trades, we successfully guided the client through the investigation which was ultimately closed by the CME with no action taken.
  • Represent a multinational financial services corporation in two FINRA arbitrations related to disputes concerning trades in a canceled security.
  • Represented Goldman Sachs and a group of underwriters in connection with claims arising from the IPO and subsequent earnings restatement of Opnext, Inc. We obtained an expeditious resolution of the matter that resulted in a full release of our client with no admission of liability and no payment.
  • Advise money services businesses on potential applicability and CFPB enforcement exposure.
  • Conducted internal investigations for different broker-dealers of trading posing market manipulation and securities fraud risks.
  • Represented a former Lehman Brothers broker in a securities arbitration. Client was sued by the former senior vice president of human resources, alleging that client failed to give timely advice regarding the sale of Lehman stock. Successfully settled matter.
  • Represented a brokerage firm in enforcing common law and contractual obligations against a former employee who removed confidential and proprietary information from the firm.
  • Spearheaded anti-corruption due diligence for US asset managers, overseeing privileged work by outside forensic/investigative services providers, in multiple significant potential investments by current and former senior foreign political figures and/or their relatives.
  • Developed methodologies, algorithms, and supporting documentation for a large depository institution to assess money laundering and terrorist financing risks for product and service offerings and foreign financial institution relationships.
  • Represented a significant number of companies and officer an directors in complex fiduciary duty and shareholder derivative litigation. Prevailed at motion to dismiss stage, at summary judgment, and after trial in numerous different cases.
  • Achieved summary judgment for a multinational corporation in a dispute regarding the sale of certain bankruptcy claims it held in the Delphi Bankruptcy proceeding. The court’s decision in this matter is significant, as it provides a guide for the operation of the multibillion-dollar trade claim market and interaction of parties in this industry.
  • Represented a leading independent financial services firm ($120+ billion variable contracts in force) in multiple FINRA regulatory investigations concerning a variety of broker-dealer securities issues. Persuaded the FINRA Enforcement Director to drop a multi-year investigation into allegedly fraudulent pricing practices.
  • Represented ED&F Man Capital Markets Inc. ("MCM") in an arbitration proceeding before the NFA commenced against the company by a customer. After a five-day arbitration hearing, the arbitration panel denied each of the customer's claims and dismissed the action with prejudice.
  • Conducted an internal investigation into massive trading losses incurred by a rogue employee of an FCM, and represented the FCM in connection with resulting investigations into the conduct by the CFTC and CME.
  • Represented mutual funds in suits alleging excessive management fees, breaches of fiduciary duty, and other violations of the Investment Company Act of 1940, including several cases that established legal precedents in the securities area.
  • Defended an FCM and associated persons in an NFA arbitration brought by a customer alleging that trading losses resulted from the alleged improper conduct of various associated persons. Obtained a confirmation of the arbitration award in favor of our clients.
  • Conducted enterprise-wide review of AML and OFAC sanctions compliance programs across large, complex asset management organization with broker-dealer, mutual funds, investment advisers, and private funds.
  • Developed intra-organization FCPA compliance delegation arrangements among affiliated asset management firms.
  • Successfully defended an associated person of a futures commission merchant in an enforcement investigation commenced by the Intercontinental Exchange (ICE) alleging that the associated person had improper pre-trade communications, pre-hedged a position on behalf of the FCM, and charged improper mark-ups in executing a futures trade in the sugar market.
  • Represented and defended a bank in connection with allegations of corrupt payments to foreign officials in China and the Philippines associated with bank enterprises in both jurisdictions. Successfully resolved all FCPA issues.
  • Successfully defended several former MF Global officers and employees in investigations conducted by the Department of Justice, CFTC, CME, and SEC in connection with the collapse and bankruptcy of MF Global following the discovery of $1.2 billion in missing customer segregated funds. No criminal or regulatory charges were asserted against any of our clients.
  • Conducted an internal investigation into alleged FCPA violative payments made in Cuba by US-related investors in Cuban/American import businesses.
  • Advised a large money services business on anti-money laundering requirements for new products, prepaid access, gift cards, international money transfers, and money order sales.
  • Represented a futures compliance director in connection with a Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CTFC) investigation into exchange for related positions trades (EFRPs).
  • Advised an international financial services complex on a congressional investigation into transactions allegedly involving US banking of foreign corruption proceeds.
  • Represented Apollo Global Management in conjunction with the Stark Master Fund litigation, a securities fraud case.  Following jurisdictional discovery, Apollo filed a compelling motion to dismiss based on jurisdictional grounds, and the Plaintiffs decided to voluntarily dismiss Apollo from the case rather than try to battle Apollo’s motion in court.
  • Conducted enterprise-wide review of AML and OFAC sanctions compliance programs across large, complex asset management organization with broker-dealer, mutual funds, investment advisers, and private funds.
  • Advised an international financial services complex on a congressional investigation into transactions allegedly involving US banking of foreign corruption proceeds.
  • Represented an advisory and wealth management firm that had more than $1 billion in assets under management, through the filing of an involuntary bankruptcy petition, the conversion to a voluntary Chapter 11 case, the resolution of significant pre-petition litigation, and the confirmation of its Chapter 11 plan.
  • Represented Western Union in a class action for unfair business practices. Successfully settled on an individual basis on the eve of filing a motion to dismiss without any discovery.