Former SEC Enforcement Counsel Christian Schultz Discusses Doctor’s Insider Trading Settlement in Oncology News Central
Securities Enforcement & Litigation partner Christian Schultz was quoted in the Oncology News Central article, “Oncologist’s Insider Trading Case Highlights Widespread Risk for Doctors.” The article discusses a California oncologist’s $3 million settlement with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) over charges of insider trading.
Schultz said that making a trade based on insights (material information) that the public does not have is really all it takes to commit insider trading. “If a reasonable investor would say, ‘I would like to know that information,’ then it is probably material,” he noted. As a doctor, you must also “be very careful not to disclose information that you have if you’re learning something over the course of your work,” Schultz said. If a friend or family member makes a trade based on insights you communicate to them, the SEC could charge you with insider trading. “And there is not a number small enough that they will turn a blind eye to it,” he added.
