Supreme Court won’t hear Virginia lacrosse-case appeal

A three-judge panel of the appeals court said Newman and Chiasson were too far away from the original leak of insider information and may not have realized the information, which came from corporate insiders at Dell and Nvidia, was obtained improperly and not through legitimate industry analysis.

The case has been closely followed by financial professionals as many of those charged and convicted could see their verdicts overturned. The court said the government must prove that the person being accused of illegal trading was aware that the tipper breached his fiduciary duty and received a few sort of benefit, like cash or a job, in exchange for the information provided.

Both men have denied insider trading.

In requesting the Supreme Court review, the Justice Department’s solicitor General Donald Verrilli argued that “a gift of information to a trading friend or relative without receiving money or valuables as a result” was enough of a benefit.

Rangel plans to retire at the end of his current term.

U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara in Manhattan told reporters on a conference call Monday that the Supreme Court’s decision means “that there’s a category of conduct that arguably will go unpunished going forward”. “The Second Circuit Court of Appeals’ pronouncement of Mr. Chiasson’s innocence, as well as that court’s harsh chiding of the government’s tactics, has withstood all challenges and is now final”.

Prosecutors warned the ruling could hinder the government’s campaign to curb insider trading on Wall Street, a crackdown that has resulted in more than 80 arrests and 70 convictions over several years.

Bharara, who has charged 96 people during his long-running probe, wanted the High Court to consider overturning an appeals court decision that made it tougher to prosecute a few Wall Street traders. The former portfolio managers were both convicted in December 2012.

The ruling could also reignite efforts by Chiasson’s former business partner, David Ganek, to make the USA government pay for the demise of their hedge fund Level Global.