On January 2, 2018, MoneyGram International Inc. and Ant Financial Services Group announced that they had terminated their Amended Merger Agreement after they were unable to obtain approval of the transaction from the...more
In the course of one week, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission announced awards to three whistleblowers totaling more than $20 million under the Dodd-Frank Whistleblower Program.
On November 30, the SEC...more
Change may be coming to the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS), but any changes to the jurisdiction or process used by the multi-agency committee that reviews foreign investments in U.S. business for...more
On September 13, 2017, President Trump issued an Executive Order citing unresolved national security concerns in prohibiting the $1.3 billion acquisition of a publicly traded semiconductor manufacturer by a group of investors...more
On July 25, 2017, the SEC announced another whistleblower award – this one for almost $2.5 million. What sets this award apart from earlier awards is its recipient – “an employee of a domestic government agency.” The Order...more
On the last day of its current session, the Supreme Court announced it will consider whether the Dodd-Frank whistleblower protections extend to corporate insiders who blow the whistle on their employers by reporting the...more
A five-year statute of limitations applies to actions by the Securities and Exchange Commission for disgorgement, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled today. The decision imposes a significant new limit on the SEC’s ability to seek...more
In the past two weeks, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission announced the first two awards it has granted to whistleblowers under the Trump administration.
On April 25, 2017, the SEC announced an award of...more
Following a recent federal court ruling, parties contemplating an advice of counsel defense must consider carefully the scope of the accompanying attorney-client privilege waiver. In United States ex rel. Lutz v. Berkeley...more
On March 8, 2017, the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit created a new wave in the ongoing debate over the scope of Dodd-Frank’s anti-retaliation or “whistleblower” protections. In Somers v. Digital Realty...more
On November 15, 2016, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) released its annual report to Congress on the Dodd-Frank Whistleblower Program (the “Program”). As noted in prior reports, the past year has been historic...more
As we discussed in a recent alert, the Committee on Foreign Investment in the United States (CFIUS) refused to approve the proposed $710 million acquisition of Aixtron GE, a German-based technology company, by Grand Chip...more
According to a press release issued on November 21, 2016, the Committee on Foreign Investments in the United States (CFIUS) refused to approve the proposed $710 million acquisition of technology company Aixtron GE of Germany...more
On November 14, 2016, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission announced an award of at least $20 million to a whistleblower for providing information that initiated a successful investigation and enforcement...more
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) recently announced a settlement with a Nevada corporation of its first stand-alone whistleblower anti-retaliation case. On September 29, the SEC announced a $500,000 sanction...more
On Wednesday September 28, 2016, the SEC announced Jane Norberg as the new chief of the SEC’s Office of the Whistleblower. Ms. Norberg said: “It has been an honor serving in the roles of deputy and acting chief and working...more
The Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) recently announced that two companies agreed to pay penalties of more than $500,000, combined, for illegally requiring employees to waive their rights to monetary awards from the...more
On June 13, Congress passed the FOIA Improvement Act of 2016, and President Obama signed the bill into law on June 30, nearly 50 years after the original Freedom of Information Act (“FOIA”) was first enacted. The new law was...more
On June 9, 2016, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission announced its second largest award under the agency’s Dodd-Frank Whistleblower Program. This is the largest such award issued since the SEC issued a $30...more
A federal appellate court recently held that the five-year statute of limitations in 28 U.S.C. § 2462 applies to actions by the Securities and Exchange Commission for declaratory relief and disgorgement. The decision extends...more
In the past week, the SEC has issued two multimillion dollar awards to whistleblowers. The announcement of two significant awards in quick succession suggests that the “significant uptick” in in the number of tips noted by...more
The Commodity Futures Trading Commission (“CFTC”) recently announced the largest ever award under its Whistleblower Program created by the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act of 2010. The whistleblower...more
For the next year, the Justice Department may be offering up to a 50% discount on fines imposed in FCPA cases. Yesterday, the U.S. Department of Justice’s (“DOJ”) Criminal Division announced the launch of a one-year pilot...more
4/7/2016
/ Compliance ,
Cooperation ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Corporate Misconduct ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Federal Pilot Programs ,
Federal Sentencing Guidelines ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Individual Accountability ,
Remediation ,
Self-Disclosure Requirements ,
Voluntary Disclosure ,
White Collar Crimes
So you want to use the government’s EB-5 Immigrant Investor Program (“EB-5 Program”) to raise cash? Be aware that the SEC will be looking over your shoulder to determine whether you are acting as an unregistered broker-dealer...more
On Tuesday, March 8, 2016, in conjunction with announcing a recent $2 million whistleblower award, Sean McKessey, Chief of the Office of the Whistleblower, stated that the SEC continues to see “a significant uptick” in the...more