Overview
Stinson has a deep and distinguished practice in the field of securities litigation, arbitration and enforcement proceedings dating back decades. Our practice is national in scope, and our elite group of attorneys hail from high-profile law firms in New York, Washington, DC, Los Angeles and Chicago, as well as from premier law enforcement agencies and the Department of Justice. Our clients include public companies and their subsidiaries, boards of directors, accounting firms, broker-dealers, investment banks, investment advisors, hedge funds, private equity firms, venture capital firms and mutual funds. We also represent special committees and audit committees, underwriters, shareholders, directors, officers, partners, principals and their employees.
We represent clients in all aspects securities matters, from investigations and examinations to enforcement proceedings brought by state and federal regulators, to arbitration and litigation.
Securities Litigation
Stinson's Securities Litigation Practice has won securities fraud class actions and shareholder derivative cases against many of the major plaintiffs' law firms. We have a core group, spanning more than six of our national offices, devoted to defending companies and their directors and officers against claims under federal and state securities laws. We draw upon Stinson's national reach and resources, including knowledge in accounting issues, corporate governance, director indemnification and liability insurance. Our coordinated approach allows us to manage the distinct risks our clients face, with a single strategic objective: accomplishing their goals. Each matter is as bespoke as the client's unique objectives and, with cases of this magnitude, there is no preset formula for winning. Our goal is to understand each client's individual goals, and to build a strategy for accomplishing them.
This approach has worked. For decades, we have been recognized as one of the premier firms in the central part of the country representing defendants in private securities litigation. We have a strong track record in obtaining dismissals, summary judgments and denials of class certification. We also have successfully secured many highly favorable settlements. Stinson often works with the major D&O insurers and such as AIG, ACE and Chubb.
Broker-Dealer Litigation and Arbitration
Stinson offers a national practice in the field of broker-dealer litigation and arbitration. We have represented many of the nation's largest brokerage firms in an array of complex disputes, including class actions and other proceedings attacking industry practices in the areas of fee-based accounts, money-market sweeps, bank deposit accounts, markups and compensation and marketing of proprietary or preferred products.
We routinely defend our clients against claims asserted by institutional and retail customers, such as those alleging fraud, unauthorized exercise of discretion, churning, unsuitability, failure to supervise, improper margin calls, unfair securities liquidations and failure to hedge a concentrated position. We have represented our clients in these disputes in state and federal courts, as well as arbitration proceedings sponsored by self-regulatory organizations and exchanges, including the National Association of Securities Dealers, the New York Stock Exchange, the Chicago Board Options Exchange, the National Futures Association and various commodities exchanges. We have also appeared in investment-related arbitrations administered by the American Arbitration Association and JAMS.
Investigations
We have extensive experience in conducting internal investigations for major U.S. corporations, both in the United States and abroad, and our team includes former federal prosecutors and government enforcement lawyers.
Our lawyers have conducted investigations involving executive improprieties, insider trading, market manipulation, accounting fraud, SEC and FINRA-based violations, defense procurement/government contracting fraud, and many others. We are regularly called on by broker-dealer clients to quickly investigate potential violations or issues at branch offices throughout the United States, and are adept at doing so in ways that sensitive to business interests, customer privacy, and regulatory concerns. With many of these investigations, our lawyers are asked to advise companies on corporate governance issues and compliance programs.
Enforcement Proceedings
Securities matters often involve parallel litigation and enforcement proceedings, and our securities enforcement team has the experience and depth to advise and defend clients in these overlapping areas. We regularly represent public and private companies, financial institutions, officers, directors and board committees, as well as broker dealers and investment funds, in SEC enforcement inquiries and investigations, FINRA investigations and examinations, lawsuits asserting violations of U.S. federal and state securities laws, and parallel proceedings brought by state regulators or attorneys general. We also counsel clients on the creation and regulation of financial products, guide them through internal and regulatory investigations, and defend them in litigation.
