This article examines the role of the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (“CFTC”) in regulating transactions in environmental commodities, such as renewable energy certificates (“RECs”), emissions allowances, carbon offsets and carbon credits.
Balancing the protection of private business interests against governmental regulation is one of the most significant legal frictions of the modern era. Over the course of the past twenty-eight months, this conflict has manifested itself through a federal sports gambling lawsuit involving New Jersey. However, the ongoing lawsuit between a plaintiff quintet of the most powerful sports entities in the United States—the National Collegiate Athletic Association (“NCAA”), the National Basketball Association (“NBA”), the National Football League (“NFL”), the National Hockey League (“NHL”), and the Office of the Commissioner of Major League Baseball (“MLB”) (collectively “sports leagues”)—and the Governor of New Jersey over the possibility of regulated sports wagering in the state is not about gambling. It is about control: control of events, control of data, control of marketing opportunities, and control of current and future revenue streams.
Although the payment of make-whole amounts clearly may be enforced under applicable state law in many instances, there appears to be tension between a claim in bankruptcy for such a payment and public policies underlying the bankruptcy code, including maximizing recoveries and the fair treatment of all creditors.
While recent valuations attributed to venture backed companies may be shocking, the VC Math used to calculate the valuations is flawed. This is because VC Math: (i) treats unissued, and even non-existing, stock options as outstanding shares of stock; (ii) ignores the fact that much of the common stock and options to purchase common stock have not yet been earned; and (iii) values common stock and convertible preferred stock equally despite the fact that convertible preferred stock was intentionally created to be worth more.
This Article will focus on Titles II and VII of the Dodd-Frank Act in order to examine how transacting in derivatives has changed in the aftermath of this legislation and to assess how the bankruptcy of a systemically important financial institution engaged in derivative transactions will be approached.
The Jumpstart Our Business Startups (JOBS) Act creates a new “crowdfunding exemption” that will allow companies to raise up to $1 million every twelve months by selling their stock (or other unregistered securities) to both accredited and unaccredited investors, provided that the sales are made through registered intermediaries. This article summarizes why the crowdfunding exemption is important, explains how its expected costs are problematic, and proposes ways to mitigate those costs without sacrificing investor protection.
