15 Defendants Including Lawyers Plead Not Guilty in Decade-Long Merger Insider Trading Scheme

On Monday, 15 defendants, including attorneys who worked at major U.S. law firms such as Sidley Austin, Latham & Watkins, and Goodwin Procter, pleaded not guilty to securities fraud charges tied to an alleged insider trading scheme centered on confidential merger information. Nicolo Nourafchan, a lawyer who previously worked at the firms, appeared in federal court in Boston to enter his not guilty plea alongside other defendants.

Prosecutors allege the scheme, which began in 2014, involved attorneys feeding merger tips to traders before nearly 30 corporate transactions became public, generating tens of millions of dollars in illegal profits. Thirty people have been charged in total, with eight defendants having already pleaded guilty and cooperating with authorities.