From Steven Cohen’s art collection: This shark is in a tank…

…and this one is now legit!

If fear of prison was the only thing stopping you from trying to get rich on insider trading, then a federal appeals court just gave you the green light.  On Wednesday, a three-judge panel at the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit in Manhattan gave a thumbs-up to market manipulation by unanimously throwing out the insider trading convictions of former hedge fund analysts Todd Newman and Anthony Chiasson.  The duo were convicted of trading on tips disseminated by a network of analysts.  At the original trial, judge Richard Sullivan told the jury that it could convict Newman and Chiasson if prosecutors proved that the accused knew the tips weren’t public and that the leak violated a fiduciary duty.

In great news to ethically-challenged stock traders everywhere, the appeals court deemed those jury instructions incorrect.  Although the appeal took about a day longer than anticipated because the judges granted a recess during market hours to allow the litigants to trade their personal accounts, the result never really appeared in doubt.  As reported by the New York Post yesterday, the newest best friends of financial scammers ruled that: Continue reading →