United States v. Berger: The Rejection of Civil Loss Causation Principles in Connection with Criminal Securities Fraud

Authors

James A. Jones II

Abstract

In United States v. Berger, a Ninth Circuit panel declined to apply the civil loss causation principles established by the United States Supreme Court in Dura Pharmaceuticals, Inc. v. Broudo in connection with sentencing in a criminal securities fraud prosecution. The Ninth Circuit declined to follow Second and Fifth Circuit decisions endorsing the application of Dura Pharmaceuticals to criminal sentencing, creating a circuit split. This Article examines this split over how to apply the loss causation principles of Dura Pharmaceuticals in connection with sentencing in criminal securities fraud prosecutions. In addition, this Article discusses the implications of each approach for criminal securities fraud prosecutions, and more specifically, for sentencing.

First Page

273

Recommended Citation

James A. Jones II, United States v. Berger: The Rejection of Civil Loss Causation Principles in Connection with Criminal Securities Fraud, 6 Wash. J. L. Tech. & Arts 273 (2011).
Available at: https://digitalcommons.law.uw.edu/wjlta/vol6/iss4/3