Maine Revised Statutes Title 32 Sec. 16509 – Civil liability
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1. Securities Litigation Uniform Standards Act. Enforcement of civil liability under this section is subject to the federal Securities Litigation Uniform Standards Act of 1998.
[PL 2005, c. 65, Pt. A, §2 (NEW).]
Terms Used In Maine Revised Statutes Title 32 Sec. 16509
- Agent: means an individual, other than a broker-dealer, who represents a broker-dealer in effecting or attempting to effect purchases or sales of securities or represents an issuer in effecting or attempting to effect purchases or sales of the issuer's securities. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 32 Sec. 16102
- Broker-dealer: means a person engaged in the business of effecting transactions in securities for the account of others or for the person's own account. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 32 Sec. 16102
- 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.
- Investment adviser: includes a financial planner or other person that, as an integral component of other financially related services, provides investment advice to others for compensation as part of a business or that holds itself out as providing investment advice to others for compensation. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 32 Sec. 16102
- Litigation: A case, controversy, or lawsuit. Participants (plaintiffs and defendants) in lawsuits are called litigants.
- Person: means an individual; corporation; business trust; estate; trust; partnership; limited liability company; association; joint venture; government; governmental subdivision, agency or instrumentality; public corporation; or any other legal or commercial entity. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 32 Sec. 16102
- Plaintiff: The person who files the complaint in a civil lawsuit.
- Sale: includes every contract of sale of, contract to sell or disposition of a security or interest in a security for value. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 32 Sec. 16102
- Security: means a note; stock; treasury stock; security future; bond; debenture; evidence of indebtedness; certificate of interest or participation in a profit-sharing agreement; collateral trust certificate; preorganization certificate or subscription; transferable share; investment contract; investment in a viatical or life settlement contract; voting trust certificate; certificate of deposit for a security; fractional undivided interest in oil, gas or other mineral rights; documents of title to or certificates of interest or participation in an oil, gas or other mineral title or lease or in payments out of production under any title, lease, right or royalty; put, call, straddle, option or privilege on a security, certificate of deposit or group or index of securities, including an interest therein or based on the value thereof; put, call, straddle, option or privilege entered into on a national securities exchange relating to foreign currency; or, in general, an interest or instrument commonly known as a "security"; or a certificate of interest or participation in, temporary or interim certificate for, receipt for, guarantee of or warrant or right to subscribe to or purchase any of the foregoing. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 32 Sec. 16102
- State: means a state of the United States, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the United States Virgin Islands or any territory or insular possession subject to the jurisdiction of the United States. See Maine Revised Statutes Title 32 Sec. 16102
- Statute of limitations: A law that sets the time within which parties must take action to enforce their rights.
2. Liability of seller to purchaser. A person is liable to the purchaser if the person sells a security in violation of section 16301; section 16303, subsection 6; section 16304, subsection 5; or section 16305, subsection 6 or by means of an untrue statement of a material fact or an omission to state a material fact necessary in order to make the statement made, in light of the circumstances under which it is made, not misleading, the purchaser not knowing of the untruth or omission and the seller not sustaining the burden of proof that the seller did not know and, in the exercise of reasonable care, could not have known of the untruth or omission. An action under this subsection is governed by the following.
A. The purchaser may maintain an action to recover the consideration paid for the security, less the amount of any income received on the security, and the interest at the legal rate of interest from the date of the purchase, costs and reasonable attorney’s fees determined by the court, upon the tender of the security, or for actual damages as provided in paragraph C. [PL 2005, c. 65, Pt. A, §2 (NEW).]
B. The tender referred to in paragraph A may be made any time before entry of judgment. Tender requires only notice in a record of ownership of the security and willingness to exchange the security for the amount specified. A purchaser that no longer owns the security may recover actual damages as provided in paragraph C. [PL 2005, c. 65, Pt. A, §2 (NEW).]
C. Actual damages in an action arising under this subsection are the amount that would be recoverable upon a tender less the value of the security when the purchaser disposed of it and the interest at the legal rate of interest from the date of the purchase, costs and reasonable attorney’s fees determined by the court. [PL 2005, c. 65, Pt. A, §2 (NEW).]
[PL 2005, c. 65, Pt. A, §2 (NEW).]
3. Liability of purchaser to seller. A person is liable to the seller if the person buys a security by means of an untrue statement of a material fact or omission to state a material fact necessary in order to make the statement made, in light of the circumstances under which it is made, not misleading, the seller not knowing of the untruth or omission and the purchaser not sustaining the burden of proof that the purchaser did not know and, in the exercise of reasonable care, could not have known of the untruth or omission. An action under this subsection is governed by the following.
A. The seller may maintain an action to recover the security and any income received on the security, costs and reasonable attorney’s fees determined by the court, upon the tender of the purchase price, or for actual damages as provided in paragraph C. [PL 2005, c. 65, Pt. A, §2 (NEW).]
B. The tender referred to in paragraph A may be made any time before entry of judgment. Tender requires only notice in a record of the present ability to pay the amount tendered and willingness to take delivery of the security for the amount specified. If the purchaser no longer owns the security, the seller may recover actual damages as provided in paragraph C. [PL 2005, c. 65, Pt. A, §2 (NEW).]
C. Actual damages in an action arising under this subsection are the difference between the price at which the security was sold and the value the security would have had at the time of the sale in the absence of the purchaser’s conduct causing liability and the interest at the legal rate of interest from the date of the sale of the security, costs and reasonable attorney’s fees determined by the court. [PL 2005, c. 65, Pt. A, §2 (NEW).]
[PL 2005, c. 65, Pt. A, §2 (NEW).]
4. Liability of unlicensed broker-dealer and agent. A person acting as a broker-dealer or agent that sells or buys a security in violation of section 16401, subsection 1; section 16402, subsection 1; or section 16506 is liable to the customer. The customer, if a purchaser, may maintain an action for a remedy as specified in subsection 2, paragraphs A to C or, if a seller, for a remedy as specified in subsection 3, paragraphs A to C.
[PL 2005, c. 65, Pt. A, §2 (NEW).]
5. Liability of unlicensed investment adviser and investment adviser representative. A person acting as an investment adviser or investment adviser representative that provides investment advice for compensation in violation of section 16403, subsection 1; section 16404, subsection 1; or section 16506 is liable to the client. The client may maintain an action to recover the consideration paid for the advice, interest at the legal rate of interest from the date of payment, costs and reasonable attorney’s fees determined by the court.
[PL 2005, c. 65, Pt. A, §2 (NEW).]
6. Liability for investment advice. A person that receives directly or indirectly any consideration for providing investment advice to another person and that employs a device, scheme or artifice to defraud the other person or engages in an act, practice or course of business that operates or would operate as a fraud or deceit on the other person is liable to the other person. An action under this subsection is governed by the following.
A. The person defrauded may maintain an action to recover the consideration paid for the advice and the amount of any actual damages caused by the fraudulent conduct, interest at the legal rate of interest from the date of the fraudulent conduct, costs and reasonable attorney’s fees determined by the court, less the amount of any income received as a result of the fraudulent conduct. [PL 2005, c. 65, Pt. A, §2 (NEW).]
B. This subsection does not apply to a broker-dealer or its agents if the investment advice provided is solely incidental to transacting business as a broker-dealer and no special compensation is received for the investment advice. [PL 2005, c. 65, Pt. A, §2 (NEW).]
[PL 2005, c. 65, Pt. A, §2 (NEW).]
7. Joint and several liability. The following persons are liable jointly and severally with and to the same extent as persons liable under subsections 2 to 6:
A. A person that directly or indirectly controls a person liable under subsections 2 to 6, unless the controlling person sustains the burden of proof that the person did not know and, in the exercise of reasonable care, could not have known of the existence of conduct by reason of which the liability is alleged to exist; [PL 2005, c. 65, Pt. A, §2 (NEW).]
B. An individual who is a managing partner, executive officer or director of a person liable under subsections 2 to 6, including an individual having a similar status or performing similar functions, unless the individual sustains the burden of proof that the individual did not know and, in the exercise of reasonable care, could not have known of the existence of conduct by reason of which the liability is alleged to exist; [PL 2005, c. 65, Pt. A, §2 (NEW).]
C. An individual who is an employee of or associated with a person liable under subsections 2 to 6 and who materially aids the conduct giving rise to the liability, unless the individual sustains the burden of proof that the individual did not know and, in the exercise of reasonable care, could not have known of the existence of conduct by reason of which the liability is alleged to exist; and [PL 2005, c. 65, Pt. A, §2 (NEW).]
D. A person that is a broker-dealer, agent, investment adviser or investment adviser representative that materially aids the conduct giving rise to the liability under subsections 2 to 6, unless the person sustains the burden of proof that the person did not know and, in the exercise of reasonable care, could not have known of the existence of conduct by reason of which the liability is alleged to exist. [PL 2005, c. 65, Pt. A, §2 (NEW).]
[PL 2005, c. 65, Pt. A, §2 (NEW).]
8. Right of contribution. A person liable under this section has a right of contribution as in cases of contract against any other person liable under this section for the same conduct.
[PL 2005, c. 65, Pt. A, §2 (NEW).]
9. Survival of cause of action. A cause of action under this section survives the death of an individual who might have been a plaintiff or defendant.
[PL 2005, c. 65, Pt. A, §2 (NEW).]
10. Statute of limitations. A person may not obtain relief:
A. Under subsection 2 for violation of section 16301 or under subsection 4 or 5, unless the action is instituted within 2 years after the violation occurred; or [PL 2005, c. 65, Pt. A, §2 (NEW).]
B. Under subsection 2, other than for violation of section 16301, or under subsection 3 or 6, unless the action is instituted within the earlier of 2 years after discovery of the facts constituting the violation or 5 years after the violation. [PL 2005, c. 65, Pt. A, §2 (NEW).]
[PL 2005, c. 65, Pt. A, §2 (NEW).]
11. No enforcement of violative contract. A person that has made, or has engaged in the performance of, a contract in violation of this chapter or a rule adopted or order issued under this chapter, or that has acquired a purported right under the contract with knowledge of conduct by reason of which its making or performance was in violation of this chapter, may not base an action on the contract.
[PL 2005, c. 65, Pt. A, §2 (NEW).]
12. No contractual waiver. A condition, stipulation or provision binding a person purchasing or selling a security or receiving investment advice to waive compliance with this chapter or a rule adopted or order issued under this chapter is void.
[PL 2005, c. 65, Pt. A, §2 (NEW).]
13. Survival of other rights or remedies. The rights and remedies provided by this chapter are in addition to any other rights or remedies that may exist, but this chapter does not create a cause of action not specified in this section or section 16411, subsection 5.
[PL 2005, c. 65, Pt. A, §2 (NEW).]
SECTION HISTORY
PL 2005, c. 65, §A2 (NEW).