Federal Criminal Defense Blog : Georgia Federal Criminal Defense Lawyer & Attorney : Gillen Withers & Lake Law Firm : White Collar Crime, RICO, Trial : Atlanta, Savannah, GA

Today's Wall Street Journal Law Blog reveals that Dallas Mavericks owner, Landmark Theaters owner and Chairman of HDNet Mark Cuban has gone on the offensive against the Securities and Exchange Commission. The SEC made widely publicized charges against Mr. Cuban for insider trading in selling shares of Mamma.com, an internet search technology company now known as Copernic, in 2008. Mr. Cuban disputed the charges, and a federal court dismissed the charges last year.

Not satisfied, Mr. Cuban demanded evidence regarding whether the SEC had acted in in bad faith in bringing the charges, and the SEC provided documents to his counsel. Now Mr. Cuban is attempting to force the SEC to turn over still more documents. If the court holds that the SEC acted in bad faith, it could impose sanctions and force the Commission to pay Mr. Cuban's legal fees.

Christopher Aguilar, former general counsel for a broker-dealer who did work for Mamma.com, has submitted an affidavit stating that Julie Riewe, an SEC attorney, informed him in August 2007 that she would prefer if employees of the broker-dealer did not speak to Mr. Cuban's attorneys, although Mr. Aguilar "could do what he wanted." Mr. Aguilar stated that he believed that the statement was an attempt to not make a witness available to the subject or target of an SEC investigation. Mr. Aguilar eventually allowed Mr. Cuban's counsel to speak with the employee.

• Email This
• Print
• Comments
• Trackbacks
• Share Link

Balli Aviation Ltd., a subsidiary of United Kingdom-based Balli Group, PLC, pled guilty on Friday in the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia to charges of illegally exporting Boeing 747 aircraft from the United States to Iran. Balli Aviation had agreed in a plea agreement to pay a $2 million fine and to be placed on corporate probation for five years, as reported on the PM Newswire. The information against the company alleged that, from 2005 through 2008, the company conspired to export three Boeing 747 aircraft to Iran without obtaining the required export licenses from the U.S. Bureau of Industry and Security (BIS), or required permission from the U.S. Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC). Balli Aviation was charged with purchasing the aircraft through a subsidiary, Blue Sky Companies, with financing from a private Iranian airline, Mahan Air, and with entering into a lease agreement with Mahan Air.

Balli Aviation and Balli Group announced on Friday that they have also reached a $15 million settlement of a parallel civil action with BIS and OFAC. Balli Aviation and Balli Group also had their export privileges revoked for five years, however this condition was suspended on the condition of the companies' payment of the civil penalty and refraining from committing any further violation of export laws. The companies must also submit to independent audits of their export compliance program for five years with the results being reviewed by BIS and OFAC. Former Chancellor of Britain, Lord Lamont, is a non-executive director for Balli Group.

Businesses considering engaging in trade abroad in countries which may be subject to sanctions or restrictions by the U.S. should examine both BIS' export control rules and requirements and OFAC's information on sanctions programs and also consult with counsel.

• Email This
• Print
• Comments
• Trackbacks
• Share Link