References

bankruptcyMisconduct.com presents the following links to various criminal statutes, regulations, publications, DOJ offices, reference sites, notable professional firms in the industry, and commentary which relate to issues such as attorney misconduct, professional misconduct in federal bankruptcy courts, corruption, bankruptcy fraud, and bankruptcy / distressed investment a/k/a vulture investing by hedge funds and private equity firms. A listing of any professional or firm on this page is for reference purposes, and is not an indication or claim by bankruptcyMisconduct.com that such person or firm has been found to have engaged in any misconduct. (If you would like your site added, please contact us)

SEC Regulations

Beyond the civil aspect of SEC Regulations, SEC forms are completed under criminal penalties for false statements & ommissions. For example form NTN-10K includes the warning: ATTENTION Intentional misstatements or omissions of fact constitute federal criminal violations (see 18 U.S.C. Section 1001).

Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 An act passed by U.S. Congress to protect investors from the possibility of fraudulent accounting activities by corporations.

No showing of scienter is required to establish a violation of Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act. SEC v. Savoy, 587 F.2d 1149, 1167 (D.C. Cir. 1978).

Section 13(a) of the Exchange Act and Rule 13a-11 require issuers of securities registered pursuant to Section 12 of the Exchange Act to file with the Commission current reports on Form 8-K within 4 business days of the occurrence of certain events including the departure of directors or principal officers. See also: Section 5 - Corporate Governance and Management; Item 5.01 Changes in Control of Registrant; Item 5.02 Departure of Directors or Certain Officers; Election of Directors; Appointment of Certain Officers; Compensatory Arrangements of Certain Officers.

Item 5.02(a) of Form 8-K specifies that if a director has resigned because of a disagreement with the registrant, known to an executive officer of the registrant, on any matter relating to the registrants operations, policies, or practices the registrant must, among other things, disclose a brief description of the circumstances representing the disagreement that the registrant believes caused, in whole or in part, the directors resignation.{See 18 U.S.C. Section 2 Principals}

Federal Statutes - Criminal etc.

The following statutes envelope all parties aiding, abetting, causing, or profiting from certain criminal conduct. Agentes, et consentientes, pari poena puniendi. FYI, The United States is defined to include the DOJ, and thus a fraud upon a U.S. Trustee is a fraud upon the United States.

Title 18 U.S.C. Section 2 Principals. (a) Whoever commits an offense against the United States or aids, abets, counsels, commands, induces or procures its commission, is punishable as a principal. (b) Whoever willfully causes an act to be done which if directly performed by him or another would be an offense against the United States, is punishable as a principal.

Title 18 U.S.C. Section 3 Accessory after the fact. Whoever, knowing that an offense against the United States has been committed, receives, relieves, comforts or assists the offender in order to hinder or prevent his apprehension, trial or punishment, is an accessory after the fact.

Title 18 U.S.C. Section 4 Misprision of felony. Whoever, having knowledge of the actual commission of a felony cognizable by a court of the United States, conceals and does not as soon as possible make known the same to some judge or other person in civil or military authority under the United States, shall be fined under this title or imprisoned not more than three years, or both.

Fraud upon the government (encompasses without limitation fraud upon the SEC, a Federal Court, or a U.S. Trustee), False Declarations, Destruction or hiding documents, Bankruptcy Crimes, etc.

Title 18 U.S.C. Section 1001 (a) Except as otherwise provided in this section, whoever, in any matter within the jurisdiction of the executive, legislative, or judicial branch of the Government of the United States, knowingly and willfully
(1) falsifies, conceals, or covers up by any trick, scheme, or device a material fact;
(2) makes any materially false, fictitious, or fraudulent statement or representation; or
(3) makes or uses any false writing or document knowing the same to contain any materially false, fictitious, or fraudulent statement or entry;
shall be fined under this title, imprisoned not more than 5 years. {Note: statutes such as 18 U.S.C. Section 2 Principals and 18 U.S.C. Section 3 Accessory after the fact are particularly relevant when professionals advise or prepare sworn forms.}

Title 18 U.S.C. Section 152 Concealment of assets; false oaths and claims; bribery. Crimes specified in this section include: a false oath or declaration before a court and destruction or witholding of evidence. Apparantly, some suffer a cognitive dissonance as they act as if these laws do not also apply to the actions of an attorney.

Title 18 U.S.C. Section 153. Embezzlement against estate (a) Offense. A person described in subsection (b) who knowingly and fraudulently appropriates to the persons own use, embezzles, spends, or transfers any property or secretes or destroys any document belonging to the estate of a debtor shall be fined under this title, imprisoned not more than 5 years, or both. (b) Person to Whom Section Applies. A person described in this subsection is one who has access to property or documents belonging to an estate by virtue of the persons participation in the administration of the estate as a trustee, custodian, marshal, attorney, or other officer of the court or as an agent, employee, or other person engaged by such an officer to perform a service with respect to the estate.

Title 18 U.S.C. Section 157. Bankruptcy fraud A person who, having devised or intending to devise a scheme or artifice to defraud and for the purpose of executing or concealing such a scheme or artifice or attempting to do so (1) files a petition under title 11, including a fraudulent involuntary bankruptcy petition under section 303 of such title; (2) files a document in a proceeding under title 11, including a fraudulent involuntary bankruptcy petition under section 303 of such title; or (3) makes a false or fraudulent representation, claim, or promise concerning or in relation to a proceeding under title 11, including a fraudulent involuntary bankruptcy petition under section 303 of such title, at any time before or after the filing of the petition, or in relation to a proceeding falsely asserted to be pending under such title, shall be fined under this title, imprisoned not more than 5 years, or both.

Title 18 U.S.C. Section 3057 Judges and Trustees must refer every crime to a district attorney.

28 U.S.C. Section 455 Disqualification of justice, judge, or magistrate judge (a) Any justice, judge, or magistrate judge of the United States shall disqualify himself in any proceeding in which his impartiality might reasonably be questioned.

California Statutes and Rules

California Evidence Code Scenarios without attorney-client privilege:

Section 956. Services of Lawyer Obtained to Aid in Commission of Crime or Fraud There is no privilege under this article if the services of the lawyer were sought or obtained to enable or aid anyone to commit or plan to commit a crime or a fraud. (Added by Stats. 1965, ch. 299, operative January 1, 1967.) Note: We believe this includes violations of SEC rules, statutes, and related 18 U.S.C. Section 1001 crimes

Section 958. Breach of Duty Arising Out of Lawyer-Client Relationship in Issue There is no privilege under this article as to a communication relevant to an issue of breach, by the lawyer or by the client, of a duty arising out of the lawyer-client relationship. (Added by Stats. 1965, ch. 299, operative January 1, 1967.) Note: We believe this includes violations of California Rules of Professional Conduct including without limitation: Rule 3-310. Avoiding the Representation of Adverse Interests

CALIFORNIA PENAL CODE SECTIONS 132-140

Section 132. Every person who upon any trial, proceeding, inquiry, or investigation whatever, authorized or permitted by law, offers in evidence, as genuine or true, any book, paper, document, record, or other instrument in writing, knowing the same to have been forged or fraudulently altered or ante-dated, is guilty of felony.

Section 133. Every person who practices any fraud or deceit, or knowingly makes or exhibits any false statement, representation, token, or writing, to any witness or person about to be called as a witness upon any trial, proceeding, inquiry, or investigation whatever, authorized by law, with intent to affect the testimony of such witness, is guilty of a misdemeanor.

Section 134. Every person guilty of preparing any false or ante-dated book, paper, record, instrument in writing, or other matter or thing, with intent to produce it, or allow it to be produced for any fraudulent or deceitful purpose, as genuine or true, upon any trial, proceeding, or inquiry whatever, authorized by law, is guilty of felony.

Section 135. Every person who, knowing that any book, paper, record, instrument in writing, or other matter or thing, is about to be produced in evidence upon any trial, inquiry, or investigation whatever, authorized by law, willfully destroys or conceals the same, with intent thereby to prevent it from being produced, is guilty of a misdemeanor.

California Code of Civil Procedure Sections 2016-2036 See in particulary Section 2023 : "Misuses of the discovery process include, but are not limited to, the following ...

Prominent, Profitable, or Notable Firms & Member Professionals of the Bankruptcy Industry

Oaktree Capital Management, L.P. Priceless Quote: "It is our fundamental operating principle that if all of our practices were to become known, there must be no one with grounds for complaint."

Gloria Cannon, Esq. f/k/a Gloria Noh, Esq. Priceless quote: "Companies often use outside counsel for the "sexy" or complicated deals and rely upon their in-house counsel to handle the more mundane compliance and human resources matters for which it is not cost-effective to use outside counsel. There is a great chance you may end up merely overseeing outside counsel on the interesting matters ."

Bingham McCutchen LLP Priceless Quote: "The best lawyers know how to balance aggression with delicate handling"

Hennigan, Bennett & Dorman LLP Priceless Quote: We employ "outside the box" strategies to end commercial disputes quickly and advantageously for our clients.

J. Michael Hennigan Priceless quote: "ethics don't mean much in the absence of courage."

Pillsbury Winthrop Shaw Pittman LLP YEAR FOUNDED 1868

Weil, Gotshal & Manges LLP "a powerhouse in bankruptcy law" - New York Times

Harvey R. Miller Priceless quote: "At my age, [compensation is] not a consideration. Its more a question of happiness. Mr. Miller confessed that another benefit of returning to Weil is a return to its location in the General Motors building on Fifth Avenue, "across from Bergdorfs mens shop and close to Barneys."

PricewaterhouseCoopers Priceless quote: The related stock option backdating investigations and enforcement actions undertaken by the SEC at some companies are causing many directors, even at companies untouched by the issue, to wonder whether other risks simply haven't hit their radar screens prompting the question, "How do you know what you don't know?"

Board level efficiency and effectiveness

Compliance with regulations and laws

Benjamin Franklin Priceless quote: "People who live in glass houses should not hire agents who throw stones"

Academia: Professors and Publications

Prof. Lynn M. LoPucki Security Pacific Bank Professor of Law, UCLA Law
Publication
Courting Failure Author: Lynn LoPucki. Courting Failure - How Competition for Big Cases Is Corrupting the Bankruptcy Courts. "An eye-opening account of the widespread and systematic decay of America's bankruptcy courts."

Leslie C. Levin Associate Professor of Law, University of Connecticut School of Law
Publication
The Emperors Clothes and Other Tales About the Standards for Imposing Lawyer Discipline Sanctions Author: Leslie C. Levin The Emperors Clothes and Other Tales About the Standards for Imposing Lawyer Discipline Sanctions,48AM.U.L.REV.1,62&n.275 (1998) "It appears that bias may occur not only in the imposition of discipline, but also in the investigation of possible problems."

White Collar Crime Prof Blog

Elizabeth Warren Leo Gottlieb Professor of Law, Harvard Law School

The Department Of Justice

DOJ Main Page

Executive Office for U.S. Trustees The top level office of the DOJ which is in charge of all U.S. Trustee's whose duty is to monitor bankruptcy cases on issues including "conflict of interest" and that any crime is reported as mandated under Title 18 U.S.C. Section 3057

The U.S. Trustee Manual

The Office of Professional Responsibility Reports directly to the Attorney General, is responsible for investigating allegations of misconduct involving Department attorneys that relate to the exercise of their authority to investigate, litigate or provide legal advice, as well as allegations of misconduct by law enforcement personnel when they are related to allegations of attorney misconduct within the jurisdiction of OPR. The objective of OPR is to ensure that Department of Justice attorneys continue to perform their duties in accordance with the high professional standards expected of the Nation's principal law enforcement agency. misconduct within the jurisdiction of OPR.

OPR - Office of Professional Responsibility - FOIA Document Requests Investigative records are maintained in the office on all ongoing cases. Records maintained include closed investigations, inquiries, complaints and those records relating to the administration of OPR.

Professional Responsibility Advisory Office of the U.S. Department of Justice The mission of the PRAO is to ensure prompt, consistent advice to Department attorneys and Assistant United States Attorneys with respect to professional responsibility and choice-of-law issues.

Professional Responsibility / Attorney Misconduct

American Bar Association Their Motto: "Defending Liberty, Pursuing Justice" American Bar Association: ABA Model Rules Of Professional Conduct

California's unique Rules of Professional Conduct The State Bar of California

Publications and Mainstream Media

Policing the Bench The San Francisco Examiner"a three-part series spotlighting California's judicial discipline system"

The Brotherhood: Justice For Lawyers The San Francisco Examiner "a six part series detailing flaws in the California lawyer discipline system, which prompted state-wide reform and new legislation. "

TOP SECRET: Lawyers On Trial American Journalism Review, By Mary Collins - "In most states the lawyers who hear complaints about lawyers keep them from the public and the press."

Courting Failure Author: Lynn LoPucki. Courting Failure - How Competition for Big Cases Is Corrupting the Bankruptcy Courts. "An eye-opening account of the widespread and systematic decay of America's bankruptcy courts."
The Emperors Clothes and Other Tales About the Standards for Imposing Lawyer Discipline Sanctions Author: Leslie C. Levin 48AM.U.L.REV.1,62&n.275 (1998) "It appears that bias may occur not only in the imposition of discipline, but also in the investigation of possible problems."
Ethical Problems In The Practice Of Law Authors: Lisa G. Lerman and Philip G. Schrag Aspen Publishers "Many scholars and consumer advocates observe that the rules governing lawyers are more protective of lawyers and impose less regulatory contraint than they would if state legislatures wrote them."

Industry Publications, Pundits, and Blogs

Center For Judicial Accountability, Inc. Documentary evidence of extreme retaliation against a citizen whistle-blower who dared bring evidence of judicial corruption publicly before the Courts as well as her Senators: Chuck Schumer and Hillary Clinton.

Above The Law inside information on the workings of law firms

HALT An Organization of Americans for Legal Reform a nonprofit, nonpartisan public interest group of more than 50,000 members, is the nation's largest and oldest legal reform organization.

The Cato Institute seeks to broaden the parameters of public policy debate to allow consideration of the traditional American principles of limited government, individual liberty, free markets and peace. Toward that goal, the Institute strives to achieve greater involvement of the intelligent, concerned lay public in questions of policy and the proper role of government.

AJS - American Judicature Society

Legal Ethics Forum

Citizens against Bankruptcy Fraud It remains our goal to halt Fraud on the Court by those who would steal from any person by pretense or color of law.

FRAUD ON THE COURT An End to Fraud on the Court. This Blog is intended to keep the public informed as to our efforts to secure Congressional Hearings for Fraud on the Court.

Wells of Justice "The Foremost Comprehensive Web Site On Bankruptcy Court Corruption"

OverLawyered Chronicling the high cost of our legal system

Distressed Investing & Bankruptcy Information

ABI - American Bankruptcy Institute

InterNet Bankruptcy Library

Daily Bankruptcy Review Yes, Virginia, there is money in bankruptcy investing...

International Association of Insolvency Professionals (INSOL)