http://savagelawblog.com 813-251-4890 Thu, 23 Jul 2009 02:48:28 +0000 http://backend.userland.com/rss092 en L. Dennis Kozlowski and Mark H. Swartz have been in jail since 2005, but were not officially prevented from engaging in their business after committing accounting fraud. The SEC final judgments against Kozlowski (former CEO of Tyco) and Swartz (former CFO). The judgements bar the men from serving as directors ... http://savagelawblog.com/sec-settles-tyco-fraud-case/ On July 1st, the SEC voted on several new measures that were aimed primarily to increase investor confidence by providing investors with tools to increase corporate accountability. First, the commission approved a measure that requires a shareholder vote on executive pay in proxy solicitations involving companies that receive money from ... http://savagelawblog.com/sec-proposes-several-new-measures-aimed-at-increasing-corporate-accountability-and-improving-investor-confidence/ His own lawyer calls him a "deeply flawed individual" and I nominate that for the understatement of the recession. Madoff's fraud is an almost unbelievable scam, spanning a reported $170 billion dollars through his company, decades of time, abuse of untold friendships, and destruction of tens, hundreds, maybe thousands of peoples' ... http://savagelawblog.com/madoff-update-deeply-flawed-individual-sentenced-to-150-years-but-says-hes-sorry/ A New York broker-dealer and four other individuals were charged with securities fraud by the SEC. It was alleged that they collectively raised billions of dollars illegally from investors to feed Bernie Madoff's Ponzi scheme. The legal complaint filed in a Southern District of New York U.S District Court lists the ... http://savagelawblog.com/madoff-fallout-sec-charges-madoff-solicitors-and-feeder-with-fraud/ More key, specific advantages of Mediation from FINRA: Control—Mediation belongs to the parties. The disputing parties control the process, scheduling, costs, and outcome of the dispute. Less Adversarial—The mediation process is informal. It is less confrontational than arbitration or litigation. Preserves Options—Parties can enter into mediation without jeopardizing their option to arbitrate or ... http://savagelawblog.com/mediation-a-most-viable-option/ R. Allen Stanford was taken into custody on his Ponzi scheme allegations related to his international banking empire.  Because the judge agreed that Stanford poses a flight risk the judge ordered him to remain in custody. The government's indictment charged Stanford and other executives at his firm with scamming 30,000 investors ... http://savagelawblog.com/another-stanford-group-follow-up/ The Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) provides a helpful overview of the main attributes of each of these dispute resolution processes.  Keep in mind that these non-legal processes are described in the context of securities disputes whether between a client and a broker-dealer or between a broker-dealer and one of ... http://savagelawblog.com/the-difference-between-mediation-and-arbitration-specifially-related-to-stock-losses/ I will be writing a series of posts this week dedicated to the advantages of using mediation (as well as providing background information on arbitration). In today's market, when fraudulent behavior in business matters is quite prevalent, it is necessary to know what options are available.  This week, there ... http://savagelawblog.com/upcoming-updates-on-arbitration-and-mediation/ Many of Madoff's victims sent impassioned letters asking the judge to give Madoff as much time in prison as possible.  Some of them have even asked for a chance to speak at the June 29 sentencing hearing. The letters are wrenching because many of Madoff's victims are elderly and retired who ... http://savagelawblog.com/ponzi-scheme-victims-throw-the-book-judge/ Earlier this week,  Wells Fargo (along with the Bank of America, regarding Auction Rate Securities) reached agreements to settle securities fraud charges with state and federal regulators. Wells Fargo's settlement involves its Boston-based mutual fund Evergreen Investment Management.  Wells Fargo will pay $40 million dollars in the agreement with the ... http://savagelawblog.com/wells-fargo-settles-securities-fraud-charges/