SEC Attorneys Avoid Removal From Stock Fraud Case

Securities and Exchange Commission trial attorneys won’t be disqualified from pursuing claims against a Ukrainian trading firm just because they may have seen some of the company’s attorney-client privileged documents, a federal judge ruled Jan. 16.

The government attorneys did what they could to avoid viewing the defendant’s privileged communications, and defendant Avalon FA Ltd. hasn’t been harmed by the SEC’s access to four allegedly privileged communications between the firm and it defense counsel, District Judge Denise Cote, of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, said.

The ruling shows that courts will be reluctant to ...