Trials Archives - Securities Docket

Rare Securities Class Action Lawsuit Trial Results in Defense Verdict | The D&O Diary

May 5, 2026, 7:31 am Class Actions, Top

In a rare trial in a securities class action lawsuit, a federal jury has ruled that hedge fund Armistice Capital and certain of its executives had not, as the plaintiffs alleged, committed insider trading or engaged in a pump-and-dump scheme in selling over $200 million in vaccine company Vaxart stock during the COVID-19 pandemic. The jury specifically held that the plaintiffs had not proven that the defendants had engaged in a scheme to defraud and had not proven their insider trading allegations.

The April 28, 2026, verdict form in the case can be found here.

Source: Rare Securities Class Action Lawsuit Trial Results in Defense Verdict | The D&O Diary

Elon Musk discusses past tweets, bots as he testifies at Twitter shareholder trial

March 5, 2026, 7:22 am Class Actions, Top

Elon Musk took the stand in a shareholder trial on Wednesday in San Francisco, where he’s accused of making false and misleading statements that drove down Twitter’s stock price before he bought the social media platform for $44 billion in 2022. The lawsuit was filed in October 2022 in the US District Court for the Northern District of California on…

Statement on Jury’s Verdict in Trial of Ismael Sanchez

February 13, 2026, 7:56 am SEC, Top

Today, after a four-day trial, a jury in the United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas found defendant Ismael Sanchez liable for securities fraud and registration violations. As shown at trial, Defendant Sanchez was a lead salesperson for CryptoFX, a large-scale Ponzi scheme that targeted approximately 40,000 investors by promising to trade investor funds in the crypto…

Statement on Jury’s Verdict in Trial of R. Brian Watson and Northstar Commercial Partners

January 31, 2026, 7:36 am SEC, Top

Today, after a five-day trial, a jury in the United States District Court for the District of Colorado found defendants R. Brian Watson and his company, Northstar Commercial Partners, liable for intentional securities fraud. As shown by the evidence at trial, Watson and Northstar defrauded investors in 11 different offerings over the course of about 36 months. Defendants told investors…

Statement on Jury’s Verdict in Trial of Thomas F. Casey

June 25, 2025, 7:40 am SEC, Top

Today, after a five-day trial and less than two hours of deliberation, a jury in the United States District Court for the Southern District of California found Thomas F. Casey liable for securities fraud. Statement of SEC Division of Enforcement Acting Director Sam Waldon: “We are pleased with the jury verdict holding the defendant liable for orchestrating a fraudulent securities…

Statement on Jury’s Verdict in Trial of Cutter Financial Group LLC and Jeffrey Cutter

April 24, 2025, 7:48 am SEC, Top

Yesterday, after a seven day trial and just over 5 hours of deliberation, a jury in the U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts found investment adviser Jeffrey Cutter and his advisory firm, Cutter Financial Group, LLC, liable for violating Section 206(2) of the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, which prohibits “engag[ing] in any transaction, practice, or course of business…

Court Finds in Favor of Two Remaining Defendants in Fraud Scheme

February 27, 2025, 2:05 pm SEC, Top

The Securities and Exchange Commission announced today that an enforcement action filed in June 2022 against six defendants has concluded with a judgment entered on February 6, 2025, in favor of the remaining two defendants, Roger Bendelac and Thomas Capellini of New York, after a four-day bench trial conducted in October 2024 in the U.S. District Court for the District…

Do Kwon Criminal Trial Set for 2026 as Lawyers Deal with ‘Massive’ Trove of Evidence

January 9, 2025, 8:05 am Criminal, Top

Terraform Labs co-founder and former CEO Do Kwon’s criminal fraud trial in the U.S. has been tentatively scheduled for next January, allowing prosecutors and Kwon’s defense attorneys adequate time to review the “massive” six-terabyte trove of data expected to be produced during the discovery process. During an initial hearing in Manhattan on Wednesday, lead prosecutor Jared Lenow told the court…

SEC, Fund Advisers Head Toward Trial Over Billion-Dollar Losses

October 7, 2024, 8:01 am SEC, Top

An SEC enforcement action against two financial firms and their managers over more than a billion dollars in investment losses raises factual issues about that must be decided by a jury, a federal court ruled. Neither the Securities and Exchange Commission nor the defendants can win on any of the claims based on the lack of a real dispute about…

Test their mettle — Defendants’ decision to challenge SEC in court is paying off | Reuters

December 20, 2023, 9:04 am SEC, Top

In recent years, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has taken a more aggressive approach toward enforcement of the federal securities laws, accompanied by much fanfare and saber-rattling. In response to the SEC’s ambitious enforcement agenda, insistence on broad-ranging charges and demands for high monetary remedies and exacting injunctive relief, an increasing number of entities and individuals are going to…