Hon. Maria-Elena James
United States Magistrate Judge (Ret.)
Securities & Commodities
REPRESENTATIVE CASES
- Action by SEC against company and its Chairman/CEO for making misrepresentations about purported company projects, thereby defrauding investors and being unjustly enriched, brought under 15 U.S.C. §§ 77q(a), 77t(d), 78m(a), 78j(b), 78l, 78o, and 78u(d)(2)-(3), (6), and 17 C.F.R. § 240.10b-5, 240.12b-20, 240.13a-1, 240.13a-13, and 240.13a-14.
- Plaintiff filed suit against company and its affiliates for breach of fiduciary duty, immigration and other fraud, unfair competition, and IIED, after the company took money from plaintiff under the guise of helping him obtain permanent residency in the U.S. without actually doing so, action brought under 8 U.S.C. § 1153(b)(5), 15 U.S.C. §§ 78j(b) and 77l(a), Cal. Corp. Code § 25401.
- Plaintiffs seeking $16 million after defendants’ allegedly purposefully poor investment advice and negligent misrepresentations (violations of 15 U.S.C. §§ 77q(a), 78j(b), and 80b-6(1), and 17 C.F.R. § 240.10b-5) resulted in plaintiffs losing a large sum of money. Settled.
- Plaintiff, seeking legal U.S. residency, took part in a visa program that she later believed to be a fraudulent investment scheme, so she filed suit under the Immigration (and Nationality) Act of 1990, the Securities Act of 1993, the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt Organizations Act (RICO), and various California laws. Settled.