Texas Supreme Court Weighs Protections for Whistleblowers who Report Internally
A demoted Parkland Memorial surgeon urged the justices to protect government employees who report wrongdoing through internal channels.
Fifth Circuit: SEC Case Against Microtune Execs Too Little, Too Late
A former CEO and a former General Counsel at Plano-based Microtune Inc. won a major legal victory Wednesday that is likely to end the SEC's five-year-long effort to prosecute them for allegedly being involved in a $22.5 million options backdating scheme. The federal appeals court ruled that the SEC waited too long to bring charges against Douglas Bartek and Nancy Richardson. The three-judge panel also rejected the SEC’s efforts to have the executives banned from serving as an officer or board member of a publicly traded corporation because such efforts are punishment, not merely an equitable remedy.
Government Employees Can File Whistleblower Lawsuits, 5th Circuit Rules
Court rejects argument by government and Shell that case should be barred because whistleblowers were federal auditors.
Texas Recovers $1 Billion by Joining Whistleblowers in Medicaid Fraud Litigation
Republican AGs have teamed up with plaintiffs’ lawyers in aggressively pursuing whistleblower cases against drug companies and other health care providers, making Texas a model for other states. Recoveries have taken off since 2007 when additional lawyers were hired to investigate Medicaid fraud claims.
Michael King: SEC Lawyer “Calling the Shots” in Wal-Mart and Chesapeake Investigations
Very few corporate executives or general counsels have ever heard of Michael King. That is about to change. King is the SEC's lead lawyer in two of the biggest corporate financial investigations the federal government is conducting: Wal-Mart and Chesapeake Energy. The two cases are likely to thrust King into the global spotlight, as fines could easily reach hundreds of millions of dollars. The investigations also could provide public redemption for the SEC’s much maligned Fort Worth Regional Office. “The pressure on Michael and the Fort Worth office right now is enormous,” says Kit Addleman, a partner at Haynes and Boone.
SEC’s Fort Worth Office Leads Inquiry Against Wal-Mart
The investigation into whether retail giant violated the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act could lead to record fines and penalties.
Collin County: The De Facto Securities Fraud Court
Twelve major investment fraud cases have been prosecuted in Collin since 2009 - more than any other jurisdiction in Texas.
Securities Commissioner John Morgan Ready for Switch in Regulation
Number of investment advisers overseen by State Securities Board jumps 61 percent under Dodd-Frank.
Fish & Richardson Pockets $26 Million in Texas’ J&J Settlement
Whistleblower awarded $20 million for role in exposing Risperdal fraud.
SEC Names Marshall Gandy Head of Examinations at SEC Fort Worth Region
Gandy to leave his post at FINRA in Dallas
Does The SEC Need An Office in Houston? Absolutely, Say Most Securities Lawyers
Houston is the largest city in the U.S. that does not have a SEC presence, despite being the home of some of the biggest financial frauds of the past decade, including Enron and Stanford Investments.
State’s Billion-Dollar Case Against Johnson & Johnson Goes to Trial Today in Travis County
Allen Jones was an investigator for the Pennsylvania Inspector General a decade ago when a routine inquiry exposed a pattern of pharmaceutical companies lavishing trips, meals and other perks on state officials who were in positions to influence which drugs would be used to treat patients under Medicaid.