Class Action Defense Blog

As a resource to class action defense lawyers who defend securities class action lawsuits, we provide the text of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (PSLRA). Congress provided for the separability of the provisions of the PSLRA in 15 U.S.C. § 78gg, which states:

§ 78gg. Separability

If any provision of this chapter, or the application of such provision to any person or circumstances, shall be held invalid, the remainder of the chapter and the application of such provision to persons or circumstances other than those as to which it is held invalid, shall not be affected thereby.

Posted In: Statutes & Rules

As a resource to class action defense lawyers who defend securities class action lawsuits, we provide the text of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (PSLRA). Congress set forth the penalties under the PSLRA for false and misleading statements and for the failure to file information, documents or reports in 15 U.S.C. § 78ff, which states:

§ 78ff. Penalties

(a) Willful violations; false and misleading statements

Any person who willfully violates any provision of this chapter (other than section 78dd–1 of this title), or any rule or regulation thereunder the violation of which is made unlawful or the observance of which is required under the terms of this chapter, or any person who willfully and knowingly makes, or causes to be made, any statement in any application, report, or document required to be filed under this chapter or any rule or regulation thereunder or any undertaking contained in a registration statement as provided in subsection (d) of section 78o of this title, or by any self-regulatory organization in connection with an application for membership or participation therein or to become associated with a member thereof which statement was false or misleading with respect to any material fact, shall upon conviction be fined not more than $5,000,000, or imprisoned not more than 20 years, or both, except that when such person is a person other than a natural person, a fine not exceeding $25,000,000 may be imposed; but no person shall be subject to imprisonment under this section for the violation of any rule or regulation if he proves that he had no knowledge of such rule or regulation.

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Posted In: Statutes & Rules

To assist class action defense attorneys in defending against securities class action lawsuits, we provide the text of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (PSLRA). Congress addressed transaction fees under the PSLRA in 15 U.S.C. § 78ee, which provides as follows:

§ 78ee. Transaction fees

(a) Recovery of cost of services

The Commission shall, in accordance with this section, collect transaction fees and assessments that are designed to recover the costs to the Government of the supervision and regulation of securities markets and securities professionals, and costs related to such supervision and regulation, including enforcement activities, policy and rulemaking activities, administration, legal services, and international regulatory activities.

(b) Exchange-traded securities

Subject to subsection (j) of this section, each national securities exchange shall pay to the Commission a fee at a rate equal to $15 per $1,000,000 of the aggregate dollar amount of sales of securities (other than bonds, debentures, other evidences of indebtedness, security futures products, and options on securities indexes (excluding a narrow-based security index)) transacted on such national securities exchange.

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Posted In: Statutes & Rules

As a service to class action defense attorneys who defend securities class action lawsuits, we provide the text of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (PSLRA). Congress described prohibited foreign trade practices by persons other than issuers or domestic concerns under the PSLRA in 15 U.S.C. § 78dd-3, which states:

§ 78dd–3. Prohibited foreign trade practices by persons other than issuers or domestic concerns

(a) Prohibition

It shall be unlawful for any person other than an issuer that is subject to section 78dd–1 of this title or a domestic concern (as defined in section 78dd–2 of this title), or for any officer, director, employee, or agent of such person or any stockholder thereof acting on behalf of such person, while in the territory of the United States, corruptly to make use of the mails or any means or instrumentality of interstate commerce or to do any other act in furtherance of an offer, payment, promise to pay, or authorization of the payment of any money, or offer, gift, promise to give, or authorization of the giving of anything of value to—

(1) any foreign official for purposes of—

(A)

(i) influencing any act or decision of such foreign official in his official capacity,

(ii) inducing such foreign official to do or omit to do any act in violation of the lawful duty of such official, or

(iii) securing any improper advantage; or

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Posted In: Statutes & Rules

To aid class action defense attorneys in defending against securities class action lawsuits, we provide the text of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (PSLRA). Congress described prohibited foreign trade practices by domestic concerns under the PSLRA in 15 U.S.C. § 78dd-2, which states:

§ 78dd–2. Prohibited foreign trade practices by domestic concerns

(a) Prohibition

It shall be unlawful for any domestic concern, other than an issuer which is subject to section 78dd–1 of this title, or for any officer, director, employee, or agent of such domestic concern or any stockholder thereof acting on behalf of such domestic concern, to make use of the mails or any means or instrumentality of interstate commerce corruptly in furtherance of an offer, payment, promise to pay, or authorization of the payment of any money, or offer, gift, promise to give, or authorization of the giving of anything of value to—

(1) any foreign official for purposes of—

(A)

(i) influencing any act or decision of such foreign official in his official capacity,

(ii) inducing such foreign official to do or omit to do any act in violation of the lawful duty of such official, or

(iii) securing any improper advantage; or

(B) inducing such foreign official to use his influence with a foreign government or instrumentality thereof to affect or influence any act or decision of such government or instrumentality,

in order to assist such domestic concern in obtaining or retaining business for or with, or directing business to, any person;

(2) any foreign political party or official thereof or any candidate for foreign political office for purposes of—

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Posted In: Statutes & Rules

As a resources for class action defense lawyers who defend against securities class action lawsuits, we provide the text of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (PSLRA). Congress described prohibited foreign trade practices by issuers under the PSLRA in 15 U.S.C. § 78dd-1, which provides as follows:

§ 78dd–1. Prohibited foreign trade practices by issuers

(a) Prohibition

It shall be unlawful for any issuer which has a class of securities registered pursuant to section 78l of this title or which is required to file reports under section 78o (d) of this title, or for any officer, director, employee, or agent of such issuer or any stockholder thereof acting on behalf of such issuer, to make use of the mails or any means or instrumentality of interstate commerce corruptly in furtherance of an offer, payment, promise to pay, or authorization of the payment of any money, or offer, gift, promise to give, or authorization of the giving of anything of value to—

(1) any foreign official for purposes of—

(A)

(i) influencing any act or decision of such foreign official in his official capacity,

(ii) inducing such foreign official to do or omit to do any act in violation of the lawful duty of such official, or

(iii) securing any improper advantage; or

Continue reading "15 U.S.C. § 78dd-1—Prohibited Foreign Trade Practices By Issuers Under The Federal Private Securities Litigation Reform Act (PSLRA) Governing Individual And Class Action Securities Lawsuits" »

Posted In: Statutes & Rules

In order to assist class action defense attorneys in defending against securities class action lawsuits, we provide the text of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (PSLRA). Congress addressed foreign securities exchanges under the PSLRA in 15 U.S.C. § 78dd, which states:

§ 78dd. Foreign securities exchanges

(a) It shall be unlawful for any broker or dealer, directly or indirectly, to make use of the mails or of any means or instrumentality of interstate commerce for the purpose of effecting on an exchange not within or subject to the jurisdiction of the United States, any transaction in any security the issuer of which is a resident of, or is organized under the laws of, or has its principal place of business in, a place within or subject to the jurisdiction of the United States, in contravention of such rules and regulations as the Commission may prescribe as necessary or appropriate in the public interest or for the protection of investors or to prevent the evasion of this chapter.

(b) The provisions of this chapter or of any rule or regulation thereunder shall not apply to any person insofar as he transacts a business in securities without the jurisdiction of the United States, unless he transacts such business in contravention of such rules and regulations as the Commission may prescribe as necessary or appropriate to prevent the evasion of this chapter.

Posted In: Statutes & Rules

As a resource for class action defense lawyers who defend against securities class action litigation, we provide the text of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (PSLRA). Congress set forth statutory provisions addressing the validity of contracts under the PSLRA in 15 U.S.C. § 78cc, which provides:

§ 78cc. Validity of contracts

(a) Waiver provisions

Any condition, stipulation, or provision binding any person to waive compliance with any provision of this chapter or of any rule or regulation thereunder, or of any rule of an exchange required thereby shall be void.

(b) Contract provisions in violation of chapter

Every contract made in violation of any provision of this chapter or of any rule or regulation thereunder, and every contract (including any contract for listing a security on an exchange) heretofore or hereafter made, the performance of which involves the violation of, or the continuance of any relationship or practice in violation of, any provision of this chapter or any rule or regulation thereunder, shall be void

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Posted In: Statutes & Rules

To aid class action defense attorneys in defending against securities class action lawsuits, we provide the text of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (PSLRA). Congress explained the effect of the PSLRA on existing law in 15 U.S.C. § 78bb, which provides:

§ 78bb. Effect on existing law

(a) Addition of rights and remedies; recovery of actual damages; State securities commissions

Except as provided in subsection (f) of this section, the rights and remedies provided by this chapter shall be in addition to any and all other rights and remedies that may exist at law or in equity; but no person permitted to maintain a suit for damages under the provisions of this chapter shall recover, through satisfaction of judgment in one or more actions, a total amount in excess of his actual damages on account of the act complained of. Except as otherwise specifically provided in this chapter, nothing in this chapter shall affect the jurisdiction of the securities commission (or any agency or officer performing like functions) of any State over any security or any person insofar as it does not conflict with the provisions of this chapter or the rules and regulations thereunder. No State law which prohibits or regulates the making or promoting of wagering or gaming contracts, or the operation of “bucket shops” or other similar or related activities, shall invalidate any put, call, straddle, option, privilege, or other security subject to this chapter, or apply to any activity which is incidental or related to the offer, purchase, sale, exercise, settlement, or closeout of any such security. No provision of State law regarding the offer, sale, or distribution of securities shall apply to any transaction in a security futures product, except that this sentence shall not be construed as limiting any State antifraud law of general applicability.

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Posted In: Statutes & Rules

To assist class action defense attorneys who defend against securities class action litigation, we provide the text of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (PSLRA). Congress set forth special provisions relating to statutes of limitation for private causes of action for individual and class actions under the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act in 15 U.S.C. § 78aa-1, which states:

§ 78aa–1. Special provision relating to statute of limitations on private causes of action

(a) Effect on pending causes of action

The limitation period for any private civil action implied under section 78j (b) of this title that was commenced on or before June 19, 1991, shall be the limitation period provided by the laws applicable in the jurisdiction, including principles of retroactivity, as such laws existed on June 19, 1991.

(b) Effect on dismissed causes of action

Any private civil action implied under section 78j (b) of this title that was commenced on or before June 19, 1991—

(1) which was dismissed as time barred subsequent to June 19, 1991, and

(2) which would have been timely filed under the limitation period provided by the laws applicable in the jurisdiction, including principles of retroactivity, as such laws existed on June 19, 1991,

shall be reinstated on motion by the plaintiff not later than 60 days after December 19, 1991.

Posted In: Statutes & Rules

As a resource for the class action defense lawyer who defends against securities class action litigation, we provide the text of the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 (PSLRA). Congress provided for jurisdiction over offenses and lawsuits of private securities class action litigation in 15 U.S.C. § 78aa, which provides as follows:

§ 78aa. Jurisdiction of offenses and suits

The district courts of the United States and the United States courts of any Territory or other place subject to the jurisdiction of the United States shall have exclusive jurisdiction of violations of this chapter or the rules and regulations thereunder, and of all suits in equity and actions at law brought to enforce any liability or duty created by this chapter or the rules and regulations thereunder. Any criminal proceeding may be brought in the district wherein any act or transaction constituting the violation occurred. Any suit or action to enforce any liability or duty created by this chapter or rules and regulations thereunder, or to enjoin any violation of such chapter or rules and regulations, may be brought in any such district or in the district wherein the defendant is found or is an inhabitant or transacts business, and process in such cases may be served in any other district of which the defendant is an inhabitant or wherever the defendant may be found. Judgments and decrees so rendered shall be subject to review as provided in sections 1254, 1291, 1292, and 1294 of title 28. No costs shall be assessed for or against the Commission in any proceeding under this chapter brought by or against it in the Supreme Court or such other courts.

Posted In: Statutes & Rules