The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) recently brought civil charges against a former law partner at a large, international law firm and his neighbor for allegedly engaging in insider trading. The pair is reported to have netted in excess of $1 million in ill-gotten gains.
In its complaint, the SEC claims that Walter C. Little gained access to confidential information contained on his law firm’s internal computer network regarding numerous impending corporate announcements involving the law firm’s clients. Little was not personally involved in any of these deals, according to the SEC. The SEC further alleges that Little then traded in advance of the announcements and at times tipped his neighbor, Andrew M. Berke, with material nonpublic information so he could also trade prior to the public release of the news. The insider trading spanned from February 2015 to February 2016, per the SEC.
The SEC’s complaint alleges fraud and seeks disgorgement of the trading profits realized, prejudgment interest, civil penalties and permanent injunctions.
If the SEC enforcement action was not enough for Little and Berke to have to deal with, they were also criminally charged by the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York for illegal insider trading.
Perhaps they will become jail house neighbors.
David Chase is a SEC defense attorney and former SEC Prosecutor who represents and defends those around the world who are being investigated or prosecuted for insider trading in SEC investigations or insider trading criminal cases. Mr. Chase is the principal of the Law Firm of David R. Chase, a SEC law firm, located in Fort Lauderdale, Florida. For a confidential consultation, you may contact Mr. Chase at: david@davidchaselaw.com or toll-free at: (800) 760-0912. The law firm’s website is: securitiesfrauddefense.net.
