Federal prosecutors in Houston will re-persecute prosecute three Merrill Lynch executives on charges arising out of the so-called”Nigerian barge” deal, the Associated Press reported this week. The Fifth Circuit Court of appeals had reversed convictions on most of the counts against the three investment bankers. Lawyers for the defendants have apparently engaged in discussions with…
Author Archives: Mark
Vonage Receives a Temporary Reprieve, But Will It Matter?
VOIP provider Vonage yesterday received a temporary stay of a court order prohibiting it from adding new customers while its appeal of an adverse ruling in its patent dispute with Verizon. The United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit granted the temporary stay, which is effective until the court can rule on Vonage’s…
The Government’s Never Ending Enron Jihad
According to news reports the SEC on Wednesday filed charges against two former Enron in-house lawyers. The SEC filed its complaint 7 years after the occurrence of the events out of which the claims arise, and more than 5 years after Enron’s stock tanked. One has to wonder whether there will ever be an end…
Bad News at Dell
Dell computer announced yesterday that an internal investigation of company finances had revealed evidence of misconduct, accounting errors and insufficiency of financial controls. The SEC and the US Attorney’s office are investigating. Can the shareholder lawsuits be too far behind? Not a good day for Dell.
Dallas Law Firm Settles Tax Shelter Charges With the SEC and Plans to Close Its Doors
The New York Law Journal reported today that Dallas-based law firm Jenkens & Gilchrist has reached a deal with the SEC over charges related to the firm’s development and marketing of illegal tax shelters. The firm willa void criminal prosecution under the deal, but, having lost approximately two thirds of its lawyers, plans to shut…
Gekko Vindicated – Seems Greed Really Is Good
At least Mark Vanos, the editor of Fast Company magazine seems to agree. Fast Company, while business friendly, isn’t really a hotbed of unbridled laissez faire capitalism. So needless to say, I was a bit surprised to see that Vanos was willing to give truck to the idea, of which I have long been convinced,…
More on the Stockman Indictment
Courtesy of the Wall Street Journal’s Law Blog, more info is available on today’s indictment of former Budget Director David Stockman on securities fraud charges. Both Stockman and his attorney have issued statements. For Mr. Stockman’s sake, I hope he fares better than the last high profile client that the Morvillo firm represented on securities…
David Stockman Charged With Securities Fraud
The New York Times is reporting that former Reagan Administration budget director and wunderkind David Stockman has been charged with securities fraud. More as this story develops.
End of the Line for Vonage?
The Dealmaker blog reports that a federal judge on Friday granted Verizon’s request to enter an injunction prohibiting VOIP provider Vonage’s customer’s from making calls to standard phone lines. This comes on the heels of the damages award previously entered on behalf of Verizon. Vonage vows an appeal, but I question whether the company can…