Consulting and Testifying Expert Services
Courts have long recognized that securities regulation lies beyond the knowledge of the average layperson—and even many legal professionals. (See, for example, State v. Nistler, 268 Or App 470 (2015), rev den, 357 Or 551 (2015)). They frequently allow experts to provide judges and jurors with critical context for evaluating whether certain conduct violated the securities law. As Judge Learned Hand observed “[t]he whole object of an expert is to tell the jury, not facts, as we have seen, but general truths derived from his specialized experience.”
I have served as both a testifying and consulting expert in civil, criminal, and administrative matters involving state and federal securities laws — including Ponzi schemes, offering fraud, and unregistered and unlicensed activity, and unlicensed activity — to legal teams of state regulators, prosecutors, and criminal defendants. Those services has included preparing expert reports, reviewing the reports of opposing experts, contributing to the development of trial strategies, and testifying before juries and grand juries. That work has addressed a number of topics, including:
The definition of “security” and whether a particular transaction or instrument falls under that definition.
The duties and obligations of broker dealers and investment advisers.
The antifraud provisions under the securities laws, including concepts such as materiality, scienter, and misrepresentations or omissions.
The securities registration requirements and the applicability exemptions.
My credibility and effectiveness as an expert witness is well established. It often shapes how opposing counsel approaches the matter, including whether to seek to limit or exclude my testimony.
Consulting and Testifying Expert Witness Services Include:
Preparing written expert reports and delivering testimony in civil, administrative, and criminal proceedings involving securities laws.
Providing legal teams with technical interpretations of state and federal securities laws and insight into regulatory frameworks.
Conducting formal analyses of registration requirements, exemption availability, and alleged securities fraud.
Providing clear, credible testimony in depositions, criminal trials, grand juries, and administrative hearings.
Who I work with:
Defense counsel in criminal or administrative cases.
Plaintiff or defense counsel in civil litigation.
Securities regulators seeking an independent expert.
Government agencies or court appointed receivers.
Securities firms needing expertise in the blue sky securities laws.