SEC Weighs Sanctions for Lawyers Who Advise on Fraudulent Deals

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2012-03-30/sec-weighs-sanctions-for-lawyers-who-advise-on-fraudulent-deals.html

U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission investigators are considering extending the reach of enforcement actions in cases involving complex financial transactions to lawyers who provided the legal advice on fraudulent deals, an agency official said.

“I’ve seen some factual situations where advice that was given didn’t look like it was done in good faith,” Kenneth Lench, head of the structured products unit in the SEC’s enforcement division, said today at a law event in New York. “Something we need to seriously consider in appropriate cases are charges against lawyers.”