Securities Litigation, Enforcement Proceedings, and Receivership

The Firm's unique ability and experience in all facets of the securities law permits it to provide strategic counseling in the defense of class actions and related SEC enforcement action and criminal prosecution.The Firm represents securities issuers, officers and directors, venture capital firms, hedge funds, investment bankers, broker-dealers, attorneys and accountants, and others, in individual as well as class actions and derivative lawsuits, and in enforcement proceedings initiated by the SEC, NYSE, AMEX, NASD, CFTC, FTC, and by state regulatory agencies.The Firm is approved counsel for several prominent officer and director and error and omission carriers.

 

Members of the Firm have served as receivers for the SEC, the CFTC, the FTC, and as counsel to such receivers, and have been appointed receivers by many of the current members of the bench for the United States District Court for the Southern District of Florida and the State Circuit Court. This experience permits the Firm to undertake strategic analysis of the risk to clients at the initial outset of a case rather than requiring the retention of other counsel as matters progress into the realm of agency proceedings or criminal law enforcement action.The Firm believes an integrated defense covering numerous fronts is the best way to protect the client.

 

The Firm's receivership group has more than 90 years of combined experience in federal and state receivership matters. Members of the Firm have served as federal and state equity receivers, and have also represented equity receivers, in major fraud cases at the request of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the Commodities Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), the Federal Trade Commission (FTC), the Florida Department of Financial Services, and the Florida Attorney General. As indicated in the attached biographies, the major cases where members of the group have acted as federal equity receivers at the request of the SEC include the $315 million ESM government securities fraud, and the separate cases of Pension Fund of America, Inc., et al. ($130 million), Viatical Capital, Inc., et al. ($60 million), Medco, Inc. and SunState FX, Inc. A member of the Firm also serves as the Conservator of the $250 million Future First Financial Group, Inc. viatical proceeding commended by the Florida Department of Financial Services. Major matters in which the Firm has represented federal and state equity receivers include International Medical Centers (Florida Department Financial Services), VIS Holdings Corp. d/b/a VIS Auto Finance (Miami-Dade County, Florida Circuit Court auto finance company receivership) Guarantee Security Life (Florida Department of Financial Services); FTC v. Slim America (FTC); Unique Gems International Corp. (State Receiver); Future First Financial Group, Inc. (Florida Department of Financial Services); Pension Fund of America, Inc., et al. (SEC); Viatical Capital, Inc., et al. (SEC); and SunState FX, Inc. (SEC). The Firm also represented a large group of investors in connection with an $85 million claim in the Mutual Benefits Corp. federal receivership.