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By:  Jeffrey M. Haber Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (the "Exchange Act") and Rule 10b‑5 promulgated thereunder prohibit trading securities on the basis of material nonpublic information through any deceptive device, scheme, or act. Insider trading liability arises under either the classical theory, where corporate insiders owe duties to shareholders, or the misappropriation theory, where those entrusted with confidential information owe duties to the in

By:  Jeffrey M. Haber In Alphasense, Inc. v. Financial Tech. Partners LP , 2026 N.Y. Slip Op. 00185 (1st Dept. Jan. 15, 2026), the Appellate Division, First Department, considered whether Plaintiffs validly terminated an advisory agreement with Defendants under a “Key Man” provision. Plaintiffs alleged that Defendants’ managing partner, critical to the engagement, gradually stopped participating in essential advisory work, including investor meetings, introductions, and fundr

By: Jonathan H. Freiberger Artificial Intelligence (“AI”) and Generative Artificial Intelligence (“GenAI”) are all the rage these days. While AI and GenAI can be useful tools, caution is necessary when using such tools. Today we will discuss Deutsche Bank National Trust Co. v. Letennier , a case decided by the Appellate Division, Third Department, on January 8, 2026. The Court described the decision as the “first appellate-level case in New York addressing sanctions for the m

By:  Jeffrey M. Haber In Cantor Fitzgerald & Co. v. PEI Global Partners Holdings LLC , 2026 N.Y. Slip Op. 00080 (1st Dept. Jan. 13, 2026), the Appellate Division, First Department, affirmed the dismissal of a complaint under CPLR 3211(a)(5) based on res judicata. The plaintiff, an investment bank, sued PEI Global Partners Holdings LLC for tortious interference, unfair competition, and unjust enrichment, alleging the same facts previously raised in consolidated FINRA arbitrati

By:  Jeffrey M. Haber As a general matter, when a contract fails to conform to the agreement between the parties due to the mutual mistake of the parties, however induced, or of the mistake of one party and fraud of the other, a court will reform the contract to make it conform to the actual agreement between the parties. The mutual mistake must be material ( i.e. , it must involve a “fundamental assumption” of the contract). However, it does not mean that the mistake would

By: Jonathan H. Freiberger In today’s BLOG article, we again discuss summary judgment in lieu of complaint pursuant to CPLR 3213 , which provides, in relevant part: When an action is based upon an instrument for the payment of money only or upon any judgment, the plaintiff may serve with the summons a notice of motion for summary judgment and the supporting papers in lieu of a complaint. The summons served with such motion papers shall require the defendant to submit answeri

By:  Jeffrey M. Haber This Blog has written about Ponzi schemes on numerous occasions. A Ponzi scheme is a type of investment fraud where returns to earlier investors are paid using investment capital from new or existing investors, rather than from legitimate profits earned through the enterprise’s business activities. Ponzi schemes persist by exploiting trust, promising high returns with little risk, and using money from new or existing investors to pay “profits” to earlie

By:  Jeffrey M. Haber It is well settled that a “valid release constitutes a complete bar to an action on a claim which is the subject of the release.” “ release that, by its terms, extinguishes liability on any and all claims arising in connection with specified matters is deemed to encompass claims of fraud relating to those matters, even if the release does not specifically refer to fraud and was not granted in settlement of an actually asserted fraud claim.” A party may

By: Jonathan H. Freiberger This BLOG has previously addressed the issue of a defendant’s appearance in an action – both formal and informal. In that regard, we have noted that it makes sense that a “plaintiff appears in an action merely by bringing it.” Deutsche Bank Nat. Trust Co. v. Hall , 185 A.D.3d 1006 (2 nd Dep’t 2020) (citation and internal quotation marks omitted). Once served with process, a defendant must appear in an action to avoid a default. Section 320(a) of N