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Sep 16, 2024 | 
jdsupra.com | Celia Cohen |Charles Frohman |Michael P. Robotti
[co-author: Ana María Blanco]The SEC has begun to bring enforcement actions against companies whose employment and client agreements could appear to infringe on the right to report cases in violation of Section 21f-17(a) of the Exchange Act.
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Jan 18, 2024 | 
ballardspahr.com | Peter Hardy |Terence M. Grugan |Michael P. Robotti |Siana Danch
January 18, 2024 – Read the below newsletter for the latest Mortgage Banking and Consumer Finance industry news written by Ballard Spahr attorneys. In this issue we review the highlights of 2023, as well as discuss various issues faced by lenders and servicers when attempting to foreclose on “zombie” mortgages.
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Jan 4, 2024 | 
law360.com | Michael P. Robotti |Celia Cohen |Nathaniel Botwinick
ADVERTISEMENT Don't want ads? Subscribe or login now. By Michael Robotti, Celia Cohen and Nathaniel Botwinick (January 4, 2024, 4:48 PM EST) -- What is a security? That was the question of 2023. The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commision has argued that it's simple: Just apply the three-part Howey test — orange groves or crypto-assets, it's all the same to the SEC.[1]...
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Jan 4, 2024 | 
ballardspahr.com | Michael P. Robotti |Celia Cohen |Nathaniel Botwinick
What is a security? That was the question of 2023. If this past year has taught us anything about digital assets, it is that the determination of whether the securities laws apply to digital assets is anything but simple. Read the full article here.
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Sep 18, 2023 | 
ballardspahr.com | David Axelrod |Celia Cohen |Marjorie Peerce |Michael P. Robotti
Summary The SEC’s pursuit of the crypto industry continues with its second-ever settlement of a non-fungible token (NFT) enforcement action. The SEC settled with Stoner Cats 2 LLC (SC2), which sought to finance an animated web series about cats that are exposed to their owners’ medical marijuana. The Upshot NFTs appear to be the next wave of SEC enforcement actions in the crypto space.
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Aug 31, 2023 | 
ballardspahr.com | David Axelrod |Celia Cohen |Marjorie Peerce |Michael P. Robotti
Summary The SEC’s focus on the crypto industry expanded this week to include non-fungible tokens (NFTs). In its first NFT-enforcement action, the SEC settled with Impact Theory, a media and entertainment company, over allegations that it had engaged in an unregistered offering of securities through its sale of NFTs. This action is unlikely to be the only SEC enforcement action in this space.
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Aug 4, 2023 | 
ballardspahr.com | David Axelrod |Celia Cohen |Marjorie Peerce |Michael P. Robotti
Summary The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is reportedly nearing a settlement with a nationally recognized statistical rating organization (NRSRO) over its failure to preserve certain credit-ratings communications sent through unapproved electronic messaging channels. This suggests that all regulated entities with similar recordkeeping requirements should anticipate heightened scrutiny in this area, regardless of the nature of their business.
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Aug 3, 2023 | 
ballardspahr.com | David Axelrod |Celia Cohen |Marjorie Peerce |Michael P. Robotti
On July 31, 2023, the Court in SEC v. Terraform Labs Pte. Ltd., 2023 U.S. Dist. LEXIS 132046 (S.D.N.Y. Jul. 31, 2023) denied defendants’ motion to dismiss the SEC’s Amended Complaint. Defendants argued that the SEC was barred from asserting that the defendants’ crypto-assets were securities because (1) the SEC did not have the authority to regulate the crypto-assets in question, and (2) the crypto-assets did not qualify as “securities” subject to SEC regulation.
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Jun 30, 2023 | 
jdsupra.com | Lynn Oberlander |Michael P. Robotti |Thomas Sullivan
The Supreme Court on Tuesday delivered an unexpected endorsement of a key pillar of modern defamation law—the actual malice standard—in a case involving a separate category of unprotected speech, “true threats.”In Counterman v. Colorado, petitioner Billy Counterman sought to overturn his conviction for stalking under a Colorado statute after sending hundreds of Facebook messages over several years to a local singer and musician that made her fear for her life.
