Securities & Exchange Commission v. Hatch

128 F.R.D. 58, 1989 WL 136130
CourtDistrict Court, D. New Jersey
DecidedSeptember 25, 1989
DocketCiv. No. 76-1520
StatusPublished
Cited by7 cases

This text of 128 F.R.D. 58 (Securities & Exchange Commission v. Hatch) is published on Counsel Stack Legal Research, covering District Court, D. New Jersey primary law. Counsel Stack provides free access to over 12 million legal documents including statutes, case law, regulations, and constitutions.

Bluebook
Securities & Exchange Commission v. Hatch, 128 F.R.D. 58, 1989 WL 136130 (D.N.J. 1989).

Opinion

OPINION

HAROLD A. ACKERMAN, District Judge.

The application under my consideration today arises out of a 1976 consent judgment entered between the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) and Mr. Lyle Hatch. The defendant Hatch has brought a motion to vacate the consent judgment. On November 5, 1984, I denied [59]*59defendant’s similar motion. The background of this matter was set out in detail in my earlier opinion. See SEC v. Hatch, [1984] Fed.Sec.L.Rep. Paragraph 91, 835, at 90, 188, 1984 WL 2660 (D.N.J.1984). Before assessing the merits of the parties’ contentions, I will offer a brief summary of the matter’s history, with special attention paid to developments since November 5, 1984.

BACKGROUND

On August 2, 1976, the SEC filed a complaint in the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey against defendant Hatch, charging violations of the periodic filing requirements and the anti-fraud provisions of the federal securities laws pursuant to Section 13(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (“Exchange Act”), 15 U.S.C. Section 78m(a), and Rule 13a-13 thereunder, 17 C.F.R. 240.13(a)-13, Section 10(b) of the Exchange Act, 15 U.S.C. Section 78j(b) and Rule 10b-5 thereunder, 17 C.F.R. 240.10b-5, respectively.

On August 31, 1976, defendant Hatch submitted to the Court’s jurisdiction, waived the entry of findings of fact and conclusions of law, and consented, without admitting or denying the allegations in the complaint, to the entry of a final judgment of permanent injunction by consent.

In its complaint the SEC alleged that from around January 1, 1974 to September 1, 1974, the defendant Hatch acted in concert with three other named defendants, while employed as an assistant treasurer and a municipal bond salesman at Fidelity Union Trust Company (“Fidelity Bank”), to violate and to aid and abet violations of the before mentioned sections of the Exchange Act. The SEC alleged that he had so by engaging in a pattern of activity of “bond swapping” and “adjusted trading” — transactions effected for the purpose of concealing losses in Fidelity’s municipal bond department. Allegedly, the amount of losses concealed were (1) realized loss of $2,003,-921.85 and (2) unrealized loss of $1,305,-795.81. In view of the fact that Fidelity Union Bancorporation, Fidelity Bank’s parent, was required to file quarterly reports on Form 10-0 with the SEC, the SEC alleged that as a direct result of the defendant’s conduct, including Hatch, Fidelity filed two false and misleading quarterly reports. By his consent, Mr. Hatch was permanently enjoined from violating or aiding and abetting violations of the aforementioned sections of the Exchange Act.

On November 5, 1984, I denied defendant’s motion to vacate this consent decree.

In his 1984 application, Mr. Hatch stated that the following circumstances demonstrated the need to vacate the consent judgment:

(1) the two indictments returned by the United States Grand Jury charging Mr. Hatch with criminal violations were ultimately disposed of by dismissal (one by a court, the other by the federal government);

(2) the consent decree had become an increasing burden to the continued employment of Mr. Hatch in the securities field;

(3) there had been no violation of the injunction since no action had been taken by the SEC in that regard since the judgment was entered;

(4) defendant Hatch was then employed in the sale of bonds as an employee of Bevil, Bressler & Schulman of Livingston, New Jersey. He had to supply for his employer’s personnel records information concerning the litigation which gave rise to the consent order as well as the underlying Grand Jury investigation. Defendant asserted that the consent decree was entered into with the hope that it would be the best method of disposing of an embarrassing and uncomfortable situation. Instead, it had affected his good name and representation; and

(5) Mr. Hatch had to explain all details and ramifications for his conduct which lead up to the consent judgment when he was applying for an insurance agent’s license which he subsequently obtained.

In November, 1984, I concluded that the defendant’s contentions were unpersuasive. First, I held that the dismissal of the criminal indictments was irrelevant to a determination of civil liability, and evidenced no [60]*60change of circumstances showing that a wrong had been committed by the entry of a consent decree. Second, I found that Mr. Hatch had only made conclusory allegations concerning the consent decree’s effect on his continuing employment. I further found that he was employed and also did not have any problem obtaining an insurance agent’s license. I further noted that even had Mr. Hatch shown changed circumstances with respect to his employment opportunities and the embarrassment attendant to such a consent order, he could not prove that these occurrences were unforeseen at the time of the order’s entry. I also observed that Mr. Hatch’s contention that he had not violated the injunction since its inception, had no bearing on whether I should lift the injunction under the law. Accordingly, I denied Mr. Hatch’s earlier application for relief from the consent judgment.

Now, defendant Hatch has returned before me to seek vacation of the consent injunction again. He contends that circumstances have changed subsequent to my November 5, 1984 opinion and order which are sufficient to warrant my vacating the consent judgment.

The defendant’s claims are that:

1. Since the stock market crash of October, 1987, the bond market has dramatically changed, rendering small firms such as defendant’s current employer, E.A. Moos, Inc., noncompetitive and forcing him to start to look for other employment.

2. The consent decree constrains defendant’s employment prospects because it constitutes a statutory disqualification that must be disclosed to all exchanges and regulatory agencies that any potential employer is a member of or is subject to, requiring a background check of any person that has been enjoined. See Securities Exchange Act of 1934 Section 3(a)(39)(E), 15 U.S.C. § 78C.

Defendant states that he learned of this statutory disqualification in May, 1985. Had he known of it in 1976, he contends that he would not have entered into the consent decree. He points out that the disqualification negatively impacts on his opportunity to seek employment with a large brokerage house because he must be cleared before hiring. Such clearance has a dual impediment (1) some employers don’t want to bother executing the clearance which, defendant states, has happened to him already, and (2), even if they do, it takes six-nine months to execute the process — in the meantime he would be unemployed to the detriment of his family and himself.

3. It is defendant Hatch’s belief that he will receive no job offers until the judgment is vacated. (Hatch Aff. Paragraphs 16-18).

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128 F.R.D. 58, 1989 WL 136130, Counsel Stack Legal Research, https://law.counselstack.com/opinion/securities-exchange-commission-v-hatch-njd-1989.