Securities Law
We limit our securities practices to the following critical areas:
 | Litigation of claims and matters arising under State or Federal securities laws. |
| Advising clients as to potential application of the securities laws to proposed, planned, or anticipated business activities. |
| State or federal investigations, including so-called parallel investigations, of alleged corporate wrongdoing. |
Brief mention needs to be made of our representation of individuals in so-called parallel investigations. We do not prepare filings for public companies, because of the conflicts of interest that arise during investigations of corporate wrong doing. These conflicts can arise in a number of ways. First, the securities law require disclosure of prior violations, on discovery. E.g., SEC v. Fehn (9th Cir. 1996). Consequently, a lawyer who represents both the company and an individual who is the subject or target of an investigation will have a legal duty to disclose information which the individual officer, director, or employee might choose to keep confidential, under the 5th Amendment or otherwise. See generally Weinstein LAWYER LIABILITY UNDER THE SECURITIES LAWS: RECENT DEVELOPMENTS. Wells, Ethical Issues Often Encountered in Securities Matters