| The Rule 504 Exemption From Registration Requirements For Small Securities Offerings |
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| Prior to offering and selling its stock to the public, a company normally must prepare and file with the Securities and Exchange Commission a detailed registration statement containing a prospectus with audited financial statements for distribution to potential purchasers and other information for review by Commission staff. However, there are exemptions from such registration requirements for certain categories of offerings that are small in value or sold to restricted categories of purchasers. More... |
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| Securities Law |
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| (An Outline of Federal Securities Laws) More... |
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| Corporate Criminal Liability |
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| Corporations were not initially held criminally responsible for corporate activities. A corporation was considered to be a legally fictitious entity, incapable of forming the mens rea necessary to commit a criminal act. The Supreme Court ultimately rejected this notion in 1909 in New York Central & Hudson River Railroad v. U.S. A railroad company employee paid rebates to shippers in violation of federal law. The court upheld the corporation's criminal conviction, finding no reason that corporations could not be held "responsible for and charged with the knowledge and purposes of their agents, acting within the authority conferred upon them." The Supreme Court concluded that criminal liability could be imputed to the corporation based on the benefit it received as a result of the criminal acts of its agents. The case and its progeny have essentially imported the doctrine of respondeat superior from tort law into the corporate criminal realm. A corporation may be convicted for its agent's unlawful acts when the agent acted within the scope of his or her actual or apparent authority. Another theory of corporate criminal liability is the "collective knowledge doctrine." As knowledge of criminal activity is often the scienter element of a particular crime, the requisite knowledge can be imputed to the corporation based on the collective knowledge of the directors and officers. More... |
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| Guide to Remedies for Anticompetitive Mergers |
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| The U.S. Department of Justice in October 2004 issued the "Antitrust Division Policy Guide to Merger Remedies" to provide insight for businesses into the policies that Antitrust Division attorneys and economists will follow in determining what remedies will be sought for mergers or acquisitions considered anticompetitive by the Department of Justice. More... |
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| Closed-End Funds |
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| The three basic types of investment companies regulated under the Investment Company Act of 1940 are closed-end funds, mutual funds, and unit investment trusts. Closed-end funds must be registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission. Such funds are regulated under the Investment Company Act of 1940 and are subject to the Securities Act of 1933 and the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Regulations have been issued by the Securities and Exchange Commission to govern the operation of closed-end funds. More... |
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