Apple ex-lawyer ordered to pay $1.15M SEC fine for insider trading

Apple ex-lawyer ordered to pay $1.

• The former senior Apple, opens new tab lawyer who avoided prison time after pleading guilty to insider trading must pay a $1.15 million fine in a related U.S.
• Levoff had been the senior director of corporate law at Apple before the iPhone maker fired him in September 2018.

OUR TAKE
The insider trading practices of Gene Levoff, a former senior Apple lawyer, underscore the importance of financial regulation and the urgent need for transparent markets. Judge Martini’s ruling shows that no one can escape the law, even in a senior position, which is essential to maintain market fairness and investor confidence.
–Revel Cheng, BTW reporter

The former senior Apple, opens new tab lawyer who avoided prison time after pleading guilty to insider trading must pay a $1.15 million fine in a related U.S.

What happened

The former senior Apple lawyer, who avoided prison time after pleading guilty to insider trading, must pay a $1.15 million fine in a related U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission civil case, a federal judge ruled on Tuesday.

U.S. District Judge William Martini in Newark, New Jersey, said that while Gene Levoff “was not living excessively, his violations were nonetheless especially egregious” given the lawyer’s former role in enforcing Apple’s insider trading policies.

The proposed SEC fine was triple Levoff’s estimated $384,400 profit or avoided losses on six trades.

In court papers, Levoff called the fine unnecessary, saying he had been punished enough and made no effort to hide his stress-induced trading, which he labeled “self-sabotage.” However, the judge said Levoff, a graduate of Stanford University Law School, knew his trading was wrong and could handle the fine given his estimated $13 million net worth.

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Why it’s important

Levoff had been the senior director of corporate law at Apple before the iPhone maker fired him in September 2018. Prosecutors charged him five months later with making stock trades based on advance nonpublic information about Cupertino, California-based Apple’s earnings announcements.

Levoff pleaded guilty to securities fraud in June 2022 and was sentenced by Martini in December to four years of probation, 2,000 hours of community service, and a $604,000 forfeiture. “Regardless of why he was trying to get caught, he acted knowingly and willfully,” Judge Martini wrote.

Kevin Marino, a lawyer for Levoff, said in an email: “We are, of course, disappointed, but Judge Martini has been fair and even-handed throughout this case, and we respect his decision. Mr. Levoff is pleased to put this matter behind him and move on with his life.”

The case is SEC v. Levoff, U.S. District Court, District of New Jersey, No. 19-05536.