§ 352 — Investigation by attorney-general

New York § 352

• Jurisdiction: New York
• Law GBS: General Business
• Art. 23-A: Fraudulent Practices In Respect to Stocks, Bonds and Other Securities

Text

§ 352. Investigation by attorney-general. 1. Whenever it shall appear\nto the attorney-general, either upon complaint or otherwise, that in the\nadvertisement, investment advice, purchase or sale within this state of\nany commodity dealt in on any exchange within the United States of\nAmerica or the delivery of which is contemplated by transfer of\nnegotiable documents of title all of which are hereinafter called\ncommodities, or that in the issuance, exchange, purchase, sale,\npromotion, negotiation, advertisement, investment advice or distribution\nwithin or from this state, of any stocks, bonds, notes, evidences of\ninterest or indebtedness or other securities, including oil and mineral\ndeeds or leases and any interest therein, sold or transferred in whole\nor in part to the purchaser where the same do not effect a transfer of\nthe title in fee simple to the land, or negotiable documents of title,\nor foreign currency orders, calls or options therefor hereinafter called\nsecurity or securities, any person, partnership, corporation, company,\ntrust or association, or any agent or employee thereof, shall have\nemployed, or employs, or is about to employ any device, scheme or\nartifice to defraud or for obtaining money or property by means of any\nfalse pretense, representation or promise, or that any person,\npartnership, corporation, company, trust or association, or any agent or\nemployee thereof, shall have made, makes or attempts to make within or\nfrom this state fictitious or pretended purchases or sales of securities\nor commodities or that any person, partnership, corporation, company,\ntrust or association, or agent or employee thereof shall have employed,\nor employs, or is about to employ, any deception, misrepresentation,\nconcealment, suppression, fraud, false pretense or false promise, or\nshall have engaged in or engages in or is about to engage in any\npractice or transaction or course of business relating to the purchase,\nexchange, investment advice or sale of securities or commodities which\nis fraudulent or in violation of law and which has operated or which\nwould operate as a fraud upon the purchaser, or that any broker, dealer,\nor salesman, as defined by section three hundred fifty-nine-e of this\narticle, or any agent or employee thereof, has sold or offered for sale\nor is attempting to sell or is offering for sale any security or\nsecurities in violation of the provisions of said section or section\nthree hundred fifty-nine-ee, or that any other section of this article\nhas been violated, any one or all of which devices, schemes, artifices,\nfictitious or pretended purchases or sales of securities or commodities,\ndeceptions, misrepresentations, concealments, suppressions, frauds,\nfalse pretenses, false promises, practices, transactions and courses of\nbusiness are hereby declared to be and are hereinafter referred to as a\nfraudulent practice or fraudulent practices or he believes it to be in\nthe public interest that an investigation be made, he may in his\ndiscretion either require or permit such person, partnership,\ncorporation, company, trust or association, or any agent or employee\nthereof, to file with him a statement in writing under oath or otherwise\nas to all the facts and circumstances concerning the subject matter\nwhich he believes it is to the public interest to investigate, and for\nthat purpose may prescribe forms upon which such statements shall be\nmade. The attorney-general may also require such other data and\ninformation as he may deem relevant and may make such special and\nindependent investigations as he may deem necessary in connection with\nthe matter.\n 2. The attorney-general, his deputy or other officer designated by him\nis empowered to subpoena witnesses, compel their attendance, examine\nthem under oath before him or a magistrate, a court of record or a judge\nor justice thereof and require the production of any books or papers\nwhich he deems relevant or material to the inquiry. Such power of\nsubpoena and examination shall not abate or terminate by reason of any\naction or proceeding brought by the attorney-general under this article.\n 3. No person shall be excused from attending such inquiry in pursuance\nto the mandates of a subpoena, or from producing a paper or book, or\nfrom being examined or required to answer a question on the ground of\nfailure of tender or payment of a witness fee and/or mileage, unless at\nthe time of such appearance or production, as the case may be, such\nwitness makes demand for such payment as a condition precedent to the\noffering of testimony or production required by the subpoena and unless\nsuch payment is not thereupon made. The provisions for payment of\nwitness fee and/or mileage do not apply to any officer, director or\nperson in the employ of any person, partnership, corporation, company,\ntrust or association whose conduct or practices are being investigated.\n 4. If a person subpoenaed to attend such inquiry fails to obey the\ncommand of a subpoena without reasonable cause, or if a person in\nattendance upon such inquiry shall without reasonable cause refuse to be\nsworn or to be examined or to answer a question or to produce a book or\npaper when ordered so to do by the officer conducting such inquiry, or\nif a person, partnership, corporation, company, trust or association\nfails to perform any act required hereunder to be performed, he shall be\nguilty of a misdemeanor.\n 5. It shall be the duty of all public officers, their deputies,\nassistants, subordinates, clerks or employees and all other persons to\nrender and furnish to the attorney-general, his deputy or other\ndesignated officer when requested all information and assistance in\ntheir possession or within their power. Any officer participating in\nsuch inquiry and any person examined as a witness upon such inquiry who\nshall disclose to any person other than the attorney-general the name of\nany witness examined or any other information obtained upon such inquiry\nexcept as directed by the attorney-general shall be guilty of a\nmisdemeanor.\n