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Dickstein Shapiro has a nationally recognized securities litigation and regulatory practice that specializes in handling high-profile cases for institutional and individual clients in a wide variety of matters before the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB), state securities agencies, and self-regulatory organizations, including the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE), the New York State Banking Department, and the New York State Insurance Department. Many of the firm’s securities litigators and regulatory attorneys formerly served with the SEC or the Offices of the U.S. Attorney and the New York District Attorney. The firm has been at the forefront of securities litigation and regulatory developments, and has handled matters focusing on, among other things, financial disclosure, CDOs and securitization of subprime mortgages, stock option backdating, PIPE offerings, sales of unregistered securities, executive conduct and perks, sales practices, soft dollars, late trading and market timing, insider trading, and market manipulation. The firm’s clients are diverse in both the size and range of their activities and include public and private companies, company officers and directors, investment banking firms, retail brokerage firms, trade execution and clearing firms, prime brokers, federal banks and other financial institutions, national accounting firms, hedge funds, and private equity funds. Dickstein Shapiro attorneys have extensive litigation experience and have successfully represented clients during investigations and enforcement proceedings around the country, as well as in parallel civil and criminal proceedings. Many of the firm’s biggest successes are in matters that never make it into the press because they are resolved at the investigatory stage, before any charges are lodged.

Dickstein Shapiro’s past and present matters include:

• Representation of Special Committee of Nasdaq-listed telecom company in connection with allegations of stock option backdating and earnings manipulation. Firm attorneys conducted a worldwide internal investigation in connection with SEC and U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) investigations. After criminal charges were filed against former senior executives, the DOJ commended the thoroughness and speed with which the internal investigation was conducted;
• Representation of a former senior officer of Hollinger International, Inc. in connection with SEC investigation into alleged fraudulent financial reporting, as well as in parallel criminal and civil proceedings;
• Representation of the former CEO of one of the largest Nasdaq market-making firm in actions by SEC and NASD (now FINRA) alleging violations of the federal securities laws and a failure to supervise an institutional sales trader who allegedly defrauded institutional customers;
• Representation of former CEO of NYSE-traded retailer in connection with SEC investigation into alleged fraudulent financial reporting. After Wells Submission, the SEC elected not to pursue charges;
• Representation of energy trading firm and its officers and directors in an internal investigation relating to the recognition of revenues on “wash” trades in electrical power and gas-derivative securities and related SEC and DOJ investigations and securities class action lawsuits filed in New York and North Carolina;
• Representation of the director of global research at one of the nation’s largest and premier broker-dealers in connection with SEC and NASD (now FINRA) investigations into alleged conflicts of interest between investment banks and analysts. Following the investigations, no regulatory actions were filed. The firm also represented the client in parallel civil litigation. All actions ultimately were dismissed with prejudice;
• Representation of one of the nation’s largest mutual fund companies in connection with state and federal regulatory investigations as well as an internal investigation, arising from allegations of market timing and late trading in the mutual fund industry. The firm also represented the mutual fund company in related class and shareholder derivative actions;
• Representation of Audit Committee of Nasdaq-listed internet advertising company in an internal investigation of accounting fraud. The firm successfully negotiated a non-fraud resolution of the claims asserted by the SEC; and
• Representation of investment advisory firm and its principals in connection with SEC and regulatory civil actions and DOJ and United Kingdom criminal investigations alleging a fraudulent scheme perpetrated against international investors in the U.S. life settlement industry.