(a) Any person who:

Attorney's Note

Under the Alabama Code, punishments for crimes depend on the classification. In the case of this section:
ClassPrisonFine
Violationup to 30 daysup to $200
For details, see Ala. Code § 13A-5-7
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Terms Used In Alabama Code 8-6-19

  • Contract: A legal written agreement that becomes binding when signed.
  • Damages: Money paid by defendants to successful plaintiffs in civil cases to compensate the plaintiffs for their injuries.
  • Defendant: In a civil suit, the person complained against; in a criminal case, the person accused of the crime.
  • Discovery: Lawyers' examination, before trial, of facts and documents in possession of the opponents to help the lawyers prepare for trial.
  • Fraud: Intentional deception resulting in injury to another.
  • person: includes a corporation as well as a natural person. See Alabama Code 1-1-1
  • Plaintiff: The person who files the complaint in a civil lawsuit.
  • sell: includes every contract of sale of, contract to sell, or disposition of a security or interest in a security for value. See Alabama Code 8-6-2
  • state: when applied to the different parts of the United States, includes the District of Columbia and the several territories of the United States. See Alabama Code 1-1-1
  • writing: includes typewriting and printing on paper. See Alabama Code 1-1-1
  • year: means a calendar year; but, whenever the word "year" is used in reference to any appropriations for the payment of money out of the treasury, it shall mean fiscal year. See Alabama Code 1-1-1
(1) Sells or offers to sell a security in violation of any provision of this article or of any rule or order imposed under this article or of any condition imposed under this article, or
(2) Sells or offers to sell a security by means of any untrue statement of a material fact or any omission to state a material fact necessary in order to make the statements made, in the light of the circumstances under which they are made, not misleading, the buyer not knowing of the untruth or omission, and who does not sustain the burden of proof that he did not know and in the exercise of reasonable care could not have known of the untruth or omission, is liable to the person buying the security from him who may bring an action to recover the consideration paid for the security, together with interest at six percent per year from the date of payment, court costs and reasonable attorneys’ fees, less the amount of any income received on the security, upon the tender of the security, or for damages if he no longer owns the security. Damages are the amount that would be recoverable upon a tender less the value of the security when the buyer disposed of it and interest at six percent per year from the date of disposition.
(b)

(1) Any person who engages in the business of advising others, for compensation, either directly or through publications or writings, as to the value of securities or as to the advisability of investing in, purchasing, or selling securities, or who, for compensation and as part of a regular business, issues or promulgates analyses or reports concerning securities in violation of subsection (b), (c), (d), (e), or (f) of Section 8-6-17, subsection (b) or (c) of Section 8-6-3, Section 8-6-14, is liable to that person, who may bring an action to recover the consideration paid for such advice and any loss due to such advice, together with interest at six percent per year from the date of payment of the consideration plus costs and reasonable attorney’s fees, less the amount of any income received from such advice.

No person may maintain an action hereunder pursuant to a violation of subsection (c) of Section 8-6-3 based solely on the fact that an investment adviser representative other than the one from whom the person received advice is unregistered.

(2) Any person who receives, directly or indirectly, any consideration from another person for advice as to the value of securities or their purchase or sale, whether through the issuance of analyses, reports, or otherwise and employs any device, scheme, or artifice to defraud such other person or engages in any act, practice, or course of business which operates or would operate as a fraud or deceit on such other person, is liable to that person, who may bring an action to recover the consideration paid for such advice and any loss due to such advice, together with interest at six percent per year from the date of payment of the consideration plus costs and reasonable attorney’s fees, less the amount of any income received from such advice.

An action based on a violation of subsection (c) of Section 8-6-17 and this section may not prevail where the person accused of the violation sustains the burden of proof that he did not know, and in the exercise of reasonable care, could not have known of the existence of the facts by reason of which the liability is alleged to exist.

(c) Every person who directly or indirectly controls a person liable under subsections (a) or (b) of this section, including every partner, officer, or director of such a person, every person occupying a similar status or performing similar functions, every employee of such a person who materially aids in the conduct giving rise to the liability, and every dealer or agent who materially aids in such conduct is also liable jointly and severally with and to the same extent as the person liable under subsection (a) or (b), unless he is able to sustain the burden of proof that he did not know, and in exercise of reasonable care could not have known, of the existence of the facts by reason of which the liability is alleged to exist.
(d) Any tender specified in this section may be made at any time before entry of judgment.
(e) Every cause of action under this section survives the death of any person who might have been a plaintiff or defendant.
(f) No person may obtain relief under this section in an action involving the failure to register unless suit is brought within two years from the date of sale. All other actions for relief under this section must be brought within the earlier of two years after discovery of the violation or two years after discovery should have been made by the exercise of reasonable care. No person may bring an action under subsection (a) of this section:

(1) If the buyer received a written offer, before the action and at a time when he owned the security, to refund the consideration paid together with interest at six percent per year from the date of payment, less the amount of any income received on the security, and he failed to accept the offer within 30 days of its receipt, or
(2) If the buyer received such an offer before the action and at a time when he did not own the security, unless he rejected the offer in writing within 30 days of its receipt.
(g) No person who has made or engaged in the performance of any contract in violation of any provision of this article or any rule or order hereunder or who has acquired any purported right under any such contract with knowledge of the facts by reason of which its making or performance was in violation, may base any action on the contract.
(h) Any condition, stipulation, or provision binding any person acquiring any security or receiving any investment advice to waive compliance with any provision of this article or any rule or order hereunder is void.
(i) The rights and remedies provided by this article are in addition to any other rights or remedies that may exist.
(j)

(1) The commission may by order, if it finds such order to be in the public interest, impose an administrative assessment upon any person who violates any provision of this article or any rule or order issued under this article.
(2) Any administrative assessment imposed under this section shall not exceed $5,000 for each act or omission that constitutes the basis for an order issued under this section, except that the amount of the administrative assessment may not exceed $50,000 for any person subject to the order.
(3) For the purposes of determining the amount or extent of an administrative assessment, if any, to be imposed under this section, the commission shall consider among other factors, the frequency, persistence, and willfulness of the conduct constituting a violation of any provision of this article or any rule or order issued under this article, and the number of persons adversely affected by the conduct.
(4) The administrative assessment under this section is in addition to any other penalty, remedy, or sanction that may be imposed under this article.
(5) All assessments collected under this subsection (j) of Section 8-6-19 shall be deposited in the general fund of the state.
(k)

(1) The commission may charge, in addition to any administrative assessment, fine, penalty, remedy, or sanction imposed under this article, the actual cost of any investigation resulting from any violation of any provision of this article or any violation of any rule or order issued under this article or the actual cost of any examination made by the commission pursuant to this article, to the party or parties subject to such investigation or examination. Such charge may include, but is not limited to, a per diem prorated upon the salary cost of any employee of the commission together with actual travel, housing and any and all other reasonable expenses incurred as a result of such investigation or examination.
(2) All charges assessed for costs involved pursuant to subdivision (1) of subsection (k) of Section 8-6-19 shall be deposited in the Alabama Securities Commission Fund in the State Treasury to be drawn upon by the commission for its use in the administration of this article.
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