Sec. & Exch. Comm'n v. Berkey
Sec. & Exch. Comm'n v. Berkey
Opinion of the Court
Following the entry of a judgment on consent in favor of plaintiff Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") against defendant Zachary S. Berkey, the SEC now moves for disgorgement, prejudgment interest, and civil monetary penalties.
I. BACKGROUND
A. Procedural History
The SEC filed a complaint on December 6, 2017, against Berkey and Daniel T. Fischer, alleging that while acting as registered representatives at Four Points Capital Partners LLC ("Four Points"), Berkey and Fischer violated Section 17(a) of the Securities Act of 1933, 15 U.S.C. § 77q(a), Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, 15 U.S.C. § 78j(b), and
On November 4, 2018, the parties consented, pursuant to
B. Factual Background
Per the Consent Judgment, "the allegations of the Complaint shall be accepted as and deemed true by the Court," and Berkey is "precluded from arguing that he did not violate the federal securities laws as alleged in the Complaint." Consent Judgment at 3.
As alleged in the Complaint, from 2013 through 2014, Berkey was a registered representative of a broker-dealer and was required to have a reasonable basis that his recommendations for trades were suitable for at least some customers. Compl. ¶¶ 1, 12. Despite this duty, Berkey recommended a high cost "in-and-out" trading strategy for six customers without having a reasonable basis for the belief that this strategy was suitable for any customers. Compl. ¶¶ 12-24. Berkey also had a duty to make customer-specific determinations - that is, to determine that his recommendations were suitable for customers in light of those customers' financial needs, investment objectives, risk tolerances, and circumstances.
II. DISCUSSION
The SEC now seeks the following types of relief against Berkey: 1) disgorgement; 2) prejudgment interest; and 3) civil monetary penalties. Berkey makes two arguments in opposition: 1) that this Court should decline to order disgorgement in light of the Supreme Court's opinion in Kokesh v. S.E.C., --- U.S. ----,
We address each of the SEC's requests for relief in turn.
A. Disgorgement
"Once the district court has found federal securities law violations, it has broad equitable power to fashion appropriate remedies, including ordering that culpable defendants disgorge their profits." S.E.C. v. First Jersey Sec., Inc.,
The Consent Judgment in this case specifically provides that "Defendant shall pay disgorgement of ill-gotten gains." Consent Judgment at 3. The SEC seeks disgorgement of $ 106,000, the amount that Berkey earned in commissions through his illegal conduct. Pl. Mem. at 15 (citing Compl. ¶ 3). Berkey has not challenged this amount. He argues only that disgorgement should not be ordered in light of the Supreme Court's decision in Kokesh. See Def. Mem. at 1-3.
Putting aside the fact that Berkey already agreed to disgorgement (and did so after Kokesh was decided), his argument has no merit. In Kokesh v. S.E.C., --- U.S. ----,
Berkey provides no argument as to why Kokesh should prevent the Court from ordering disgorgement other than to say that "based on Kokesh, disgorgement should not be ordered." Pl. Mem. at 3. But Kokesh itself explicitly stated that "[n]othing in this opinion should be interpreted as an opinion on whether courts possess authority to order disgorgement in SEC enforcement proceedings or on whether courts have properly applied disgorgement principles in this context."
Accordingly, the Court orders that Berkey disgorge $ 106,000, given that this was the amount in commissions that Berkey earned through his illegal conduct. See Hasho,
B. Prejudgment Interest
In securities cases, "[p]rejudgment interest may be awarded on sums ordered disgorged in order to fully compensate the wronged party for actual damages suffered." Frohling,
C. Civil Monetary Penalties
"Civil monetary penalties are authorized by the Securities Act and the Exchange Act for both deterrent and punitive purposes." Frohling,
*360S.E.C. v. Amerindo Inv. Advisors Inc.,
In exercising this discretion, courts weigh (1) the egregiousness of the defendant's conduct; (2) the degree of the defendant's scienter; (3) whether the defendant's conduct created substantial losses or the risk of substantial losses to other persons; (4) whether the defendant's conduct was isolated or recurrent; and (5) whether the penalty should be reduced due to the defendant's demonstrated current and future financial condition.
Berkey does not contest that his actions, as alleged in the complaint, warrant Tier III penalties or that the first four factors favor a significant fine. Indeed, the allegations in the complaint - which the Consent Judgment requires that we deem to be true, see Consent Judgment at 3 - show that Berkey knowingly and recurrently engaged in deceitful activities that resulted in substantial losses to several customers, see Compl. ¶¶ 1-3, 12-40. Accordingly, a significant penalty is necessary to punish Berkey and to deter Berkey and others from engaging in similar actions in the future. Many securities enforcement cases have awarded a penalty equal to the amount gained by the defendant. See, e.g., Sec. & Exch. Comm'n v. Spark Trading Grp., LLC,
Such reasoning would point to a fine of $ 106,000. Berkey, however, has proferred documents showing that he has a net worth of negative $ 76,335.33, see United States Security and Exchange Commission Statement of Financial Condition (annexed as Ex. 7 to Berkey Aff.) ("Statement of Financial Condition"), at 2, and a negative monthly cash flow, with two children to support, see id. at 5-6, 8; Berkey Aff. ¶ 12. He works on a commission basis in sales, Berkey Aff. ¶ 11, and shows an adjusted gross income of $ 70,303 on his 2017 tax return, see 2017 Income Tax Return (annexed as Ex. 1 to Berkey Aff.), and wages of $ 93,238.79 on his 2018 W-2, see 2018 W-2 and Earnings Summary (annexed as Ex. 2 to Berkey Aff.). His monthly expenses are not extravagant and include a significant monthly child support payment. See Statement of Financial Condition at 6. Berkey obviously has limited ability to pay a fine. On the other hand, he has a long future potential earning career given his age (44). After considering Berkey's financial condition, as well as all the other factors that show egregious conduct on his part (including his settling prior cases alleging churning for a total of $ 35,500, see Stoeling Decl., Exhibit 1), we conclude that a fine in the amount of $ 71,000 is appropriate.
III. CONCLUSION
For the foregoing reasons, plaintiff's motion (Docket # 42) is granted. The Clerk is directed to enter judgment in favor of plaintiff and against defendant Zachary S. Berkey in the amount of *361$ 177,000 plus an amount representing prejudgment interest on $ 106,000 from December 31, 2014, until the date judgment is entered, to be calculated by the Clerk at the rate set forth in
SO ORDERED.
See Notice of Motion, filed Jan. 18, 2019 (Docket # 42); Memorandum of Law in Support of Plaintiff's Motion for Disgorgement, Prejudgment Interest and a Civil Money Penalty Against Defendant Zachary S. Berkey, filed Jan. 18, 2019 (Docket # 43) ("Pl. Mem."); Declaration of David Stoeling, filed Jan. 18, 2019 (Docket # 44) ("Stoeling Decl."); Affidavit of Defendant Zachary S. Berkey, filed Mar. 1, 2019 (Docket # 45) ("Berkey Aff."); Memorandum of Law in Opposition to Plaintiff's Motion for Disgorgement, Penalties and Other Relief, filed Mar. 1, 2019 (Docket # 46) ("Def. Mem."); Reply Memorandum of Law in Support of Plaintiff's Motion for Disgorgement, Prejudgment Interest, and a Civil Money Penalty Against Defendant Zachary S. Berkey, filed Mar. 29, 2019 (Docket # 47) ("Pl. Reply").
Reference
- Full Case Name
- SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION v. Zachary S. BERKEY
- Cited By
- 1 case
- Status
- Published