Featured Books
Securities Litigation and Enforcement in a Nutshell – The 2nd edition of the Securities Litigation and Enforcement Nutshell focuses on an area of law that burgeoned nearly two decades ago after the accounting and corporate governance scandals at Enron, WorldCom, and other large publicly traded companies. It is an area of law that has only continued to expand with the 2008 financial crisis and subsequent legislation, including the Dodd-Frank Act of 2010 and the JOBS Act of 2012 and several recent rulings by the U.S. Supreme Court. The Nutshell examines private, SEC, and criminal enforcement of federal securities laws, with an emphasis on the elements that establish securities fraud and the doctrinal and practical issues that typically emerge in prosecuting or defending such claims.
Broker-Dealer Regulation in a Nutshell is a similar introduction, and while the laws regulating broker-dealers are complex, this book provides an overview of the concepts and regulations.
Investment Adviser Regulation: A Step-by-Step Guide to Compliance and The Law is an excellent starting point for understanding the regulation of investment advisers.
Recent Articles
FINRA Proposes Changes to Reporting Outside Business Activities
FINRA Regulatory Notice 25-05, issued on March 14, 2025, proposes consolidating Rules 3270 and 3280 into a single rule—tentatively titled Rule 3290—to streamline and reduce unnecessary burdens regarding associated persons’ outside activities. The comment period for this proposal ends on May 13, 2025. Key Points of the Proposal Consolidation of Rules: The proposal aims to merge FINRA ...
By Building Wealth, Investors Power U.S. Economy
How Investing Fuels the U.S. Economy and Builds Your Financial Future The SEC Shines a Light on Investing During National Financial Literacy Month Each April, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), through its Office of Investor Education and Advocacy (OIEA), uses National Financial Literacy Month to spotlight the critical role investing plays—not only in shaping a ...
Should Brokers and Firms Share a Lawyer?
By Mark J. Astarita, Esq. A repeating question on my website comes from brokers who are named in an arbitration proceeding by a customer, and whose firm offers to provide an attorney to represent both the broker and the firm. The question is always, do I need my own attorney? When Trust Issues and Financial Liability Complicate ...
Tips for a Successful Securities Mediation
Tips for a Successful Securities Mediation Securities arbitration is a proven method for resolving disputes in the securities industry. It is a quicker and more cost-effective alternative to traditional court proceedings. With increasing frequency, investors and advisors are turning to mediation to make the process even more effective. Mediation is a form of alternative dispute resolution that ...
SEC Seeks Candidates for Membership on the Investor Advisory Committee
The Securities and Exchange Commission is seeking candidates for appointment as members of the SEC’s Investor Advisory Committee, which was established by the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act to help protect investors and improve… SEC Press Release
Advisers Settle SEC Charges for Acting as Unregistered Brokers
SEC Takes Action Against VCP Financial and Investment Advisers for Regulatory Violations Investment Advisers Caught Selling Pre-IPO Investments Without Proper Registration The SEC has announced settled charges against three investment adviser representatives—Tamir Shabat, Danny Z. Spiegel, and Joseph J. Orlando, Jr.—for operating as unregistered brokers while selling membership interests in LLCs that purportedly invested in pre-IPO companies. ...
An SEC Subpoena, FINRA OTR. 2025 Update.
By Mark J. Astarita, Esq. Understanding the implications of an SEC subpoena is crucial for those involved in securities law. WHILE BROKERS OFTEN BECOME upset or even angry when they are named in customer arbitration; nothing strikes fear in the hearts of licensed individuals as much as receiving an SEC subpoena or a FINRA 8210 request. The ...
What Happens If I Ignore an SEC Subpoena?
Anyone who follows our blog or website knows one thing. The SEC Enforcement Division is getting tougher on financial firms. They are also getting tougher on investors and issuers. When you are served with an SEC subpoena, you know that they are not fun to deal with. But you must deal with it. Even if you ...
SEC Division of Examinations Announces 2025 Priorities
2025 SEC Examination Priorities: A Comprehensive Overview for Investors and Registrants The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has unveiled its examination priorities for 2025, setting the agenda for monitoring compliance and mitigating risks in U.S. capital markets. This annual update informs investors, registrants, and financial institutions about the key focus areas the Division of Examinations will ...
What Does a Securities Lawyer Do?
Mark J. Astarita, Esq. is a nationally recognized securities attorney, representing clients in securities investigations, arbitrations and litigation matters across the country. You can contact him at 212-509-6544 or by email at mja@sallahlaw.com Securities law is a specialized field of law encompassing various types of securities lawyers. Transactional securities lawyers assist companies with capital raising, stock ...
Introductory Materials
Introduction to the Federal Securities Laws – written by securities lawyer Mark Astarita, an overview of the federal regulatory scheme for the financial markets. Written for the non-lawyer, with links to more detailed information
Introduction to the Blue Sky Laws (State Securities Laws) – In addition to the Federal Securities Laws, each state has its own securities laws. Those laws vary from state to state and require registration or notification of securities offerings and registration of brokers and brokerage firms. Each state has a regulatory agency that administers the law, typically known as the state Securities Commissioner. This introduction provides an overview of the regulatory scheme. A list of state securities commissioners and their addresses is available in our Guide to State Securities Regulators.
Introduction to Securities Arbitration – In general, and in the securities industry, a party cannot be compelled to arbitrate a dispute unless he has contractually bound himself to do so. Registered representatives and their firms are contractually bound to arbitrate their disputes with their customers, even in the absence of a written contract with the customer. The contractual obligation arises not from a customer agreement but from their registration with FINRA. For customers and financial professionals, an introduction to the process, from start to finish.
Introduction to the Initial Public Offering Process – in the Corporate Finance section, an introduction to the public offering process
Introduction to Private Placements – in addition to public offerings, many companies raise money by selling securities in a private offering. There are many restrictions and caveats to the process.
Introduction to Insider Trading – there is legal insider trading and illegal insider trading. When investors, regardless of their relationship with the company, trade on material, non-public information, there is a risk that the trading is illegal.
Registration of Investment Advisors – one of our featured articles, an introduction to becoming an investment adviser and what you need to know to start an advisory firm
Guide to Broker-Dealer Registration – an updated version of the SEC’s original guide is now online.
Mark Astarita is a nationally recognized securities attorney, who represents investors, financial professionals and firms in securities litigation, arbitration and regulatory matters, including SEC and FINRA investigations and enforcement proceedings.
He is a partner in the national securities law firm Sallah Astarita & Cox, LLC, and the founder of The Securities Law Home Page - SECLaw.com, which was one of the first legal topic sites on the Internet. It went online in 1995 and is updated daily with news, commentary and securities law related links.
