United States Fourth Circuit

Summary judgment in favor of defendant brokerage firm in securities fraud action, and finding of violations of Rule 11(b), Fed. R. Civ. P., is vacated to the extent that the district court imposed no sanction at all, as the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995 mandates a sanction in any private securities action where a party or lawyer violates Rule 11(b).

Appellate Information

• Argued 02/01/2006
• Decided 05/17/2006
• Published 05/17/2006

Judges

• Before MICHAEL, SHEDD, and DUNCAN, Circuit Judges.

Court

• United States Fourth Circuit

Counsel

• For Appellees:
  
• ARGUED:  James Alwin Murphy, Leclair Ryan, P.C., Richmond, Virginia, for Appellant/Cross-Appellee Wachovia Securities, Incorporated.   Arthur Raphael Miller, Harvard Law School, Cambridge, Massachusetts, for Appellee/Cross-Appellant Patrick V. Morris, Individually and on behalf of all others similarly situated.   ON BRIEF:  Cameron S. Matheson, Leclair Ryan, P.C., Richmond, Virginia, for Appellant/Cross-Appellee.  Mark J. Krudys, Richmond, Virginia;  Peter G.A. Safirstein, Milberg, Weiss, Bershad & Schulman, L.L.P., New York, New York, for Appellee/Cross-Appellant.