FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
2012-86

Washington, D.C., May 8, 2012 — The Securities and Exchange Commission today announced charges against a Hollywood movie producer along with his brother, cousin, and three others in his circle of friends and business partners for insider trading in the stock of a company for which he served on the board of directors.

The SEC a...
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by James McGrath

[Ed. Note: This post is reprinted in its entirety from Attorney James McGrath's Internal Investigations Blog. Jim is a friend and great lawyer specializing in Foreign Corrupt Practices Act cases and internal corporate investigations. As you read this story and his blog (and we recommend that you follow Jim's blog if this is a topic that interests you), please remember that we are interested in the other sides of these cases - whistleblowers who come forward to report fraud and corporate abuse.]Read Full Article

by Brian Mahany

In order to foreclose on a home, a bank must prove that the homeowner has defaulted on the loan and that the bank owns the mortgage. Because mortgages today are routinely sold to investors, banks usually hold an assignment of the mortgage showing they are the rightful owner. As we learned in the “robo-signing” scandal, the banks often can’t prove they own the paper.

While properties were increasingly weekly, no one really worried to much about a default. The buyer could simply sell the property and every one would be made whole. Obviously, the...
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Some investors in the $194 million Ponzi scheme orchestrated by Trevor Cook recently learned that, as a result of a clerical error by the U.S. District Clerk's office in making interim distributions, they inadvertently received more than the allotted pro rata share that was due to each investor.  As a result, the Receiver and the U.S. Treasury are now demanding that overpaid investors return the excess funds.  The problem is, not all investors are complying.

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