Category: Corporate

I. Capital Markets

With "more than half of all U.S. households," previously assessed at $57 million, participating in equity markets through "investments either directly in securities or indirectly in mutual funds" the need to maintain investor confidence is paramount. [1] Ways of maintaining investor confidence include enforcing strict compliance with established auditing, disclosure, and financial reporting requirements. [2] Furthermore, allowing adequate remedies at law for violations of securities law promotes investor confidence in the capital markets. However, investors seeking private class action lawsuits against potential defendants such as lawyers, banks, and accountants alleged to have aided and abetted securities fraud face a substantial impediment.

In a recent 5-3 decision, the United States Supreme Court ruled in the case of Stoneridge Investment Partners, LLC v. Scientific-Atlanta, Inc. [3] Writing for the majority, Justice Anthony Kennedy was joined by Chief Justice John Roberts, Justice Samuel Alito, Justice Antonin Scalia, and Justice … Read the rest

I. La Règle du Jeu

Société Générale SA (“SocGen”) seemed poised to become one of the strongest and most
well-respected financial institutions in Europe. In April 2007, they had acquired 75% of Banka
Popullore in Albania.[1]
Their stock, listed on the Euronext, reached an all-time high of $158.42 a share
on May 4, 2007, shortly following the acquisition of Banka Popullore. Their performance heading into 2008 had been
so strong that Risk Magazine named SocGen the Equity Derivatives House of the
Year.[2] Risk Magazine noted that SocGen has handled
the recent volatility in the market effectively through the use of innovation
and risk management.[3]

Despite these accolades and accomplishments,
SocGen has spiraled downhill since the start of the New Year.  This
article will examine how a rogue trader nearly brought SocGen to its
knees, why lax banking controls allowed it to happen, and how it can be
prevented in the … Read the rest

I. The Phantom Menace for Consumers

High Definition Television (HDTV) was first demonstrated to the public in 1969 and
made commercially available in the mid-1990s.[1] However, upon being made commercially
available, HDTV created a problem for consumers who wished to record
and watch movies. In 1998, more than 90% of households in the United
States had a videocassette recorder (VCR).[2] At the time, most of those VCRs recorded in an analog format, rather than in a digital format.[3] Analog media formats have lower image and sound qualities than digital media formats.[4]
While consumers would be able to watch
videocassettes on their HDTVs, they would not be utilizing the high
definition technology to its fullest. A digital media format needed to
come into the marketplace that could cheaply and effectively record and
play high definition programming. However, instead of one format
establishing itself, two formats have fought to become the next… Read the rest

I. Introduction

In a survey by the American Bar
Association (“ABA”), an overwhelming majority of lawyers asserted that
legal professionals should do pro bono work.  [1]  Indeed, the Supreme
Court’s majority stated in a 1989 decision that “in a time when the
need for legal services among the poor is growing and public funding
for such services has not kept pace, lawyers’ ethical obligation to
volunteer their time and skills pro bono publico is manifest.”  [2] 
Though 93% of attorneys polled by the ABA agreed with this statement,
only 66% of these attorneys backed belief with action to do pro bono
work, averaging 39 hours a year per attorney. [3]

In this day and age, almost every major corporate law firms has a
large pro bono program.  [4]  These programs are publicized in news
releases and in large, splashy sections of their web sites.  [5]   But
is this pro bono … Read the rest