Key Developments in Insider Trading Enforcement - Trends, Sweeps, Key Cases and Prosecutions

Patrick is a former federal prosecutor with a proven track record of navigating clients through their most sensitive and challenging matters. Patrick regularly performs sensitive internal investigations for companies, their Boards, as well as their Special/Audit Committees. He also represents companies and their executives in criminal and regulatory enforcement matters. Beyond that, he is a trial lawyer. He is equally adept defending companies and their executives as he is prosecuting claims on their behalf.

Patrick has been recognized as a leading lawyer in white-collar and government investigations. Chambers USA has been ranking Patrick since 2019 to this day. In 2020, Crain’s Chicago Business named Patrick to its prestigious 40 Under 40 list, noting that he was “widely viewed as the best investigator” while an Assistant United States Attorney for the Northern District of Illinois.

Patrick is an accomplished trial lawyer, having taken more than a dozen cases to trial. His trial experience spans federal and state court, and he has trial experience bringing and defending against claims on behalf of his clients. Patrick brings passion, insightfulness, and a methodological approach to trial, helping clients achieve their goals as efficiently and effectively as possible. When not trying cases, Patrick draws on his trial experience to help his clients in litigation and enforcement matters focus on key objectives and how best to achieve those objectives. Representative litigation matters span antitrust, racketeering, breaches of fiduciary duty, securities fraud, to other commercial and business litigation claims.

Dan Hayes, a former supervisory trial counsel at the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), is an experienced trial attorney who represents clients in government enforcement actions and investigations, internal corporate investigations, securities class actions, and other complex business disputes. Mr. Hayes has more than 25 years of experience prosecuting and defending complex financial and commercial disputes, including more than ten trials and arbitration hearings.

Dan was with the SEC from 2010 to 2023. During his tenure, he led the prosecution of a wide variety of SEC enforcement actions in U.S. district courts and SEC administrative proceedings throughout the country.

Most recently, Dan served as co-head of the trial unit in the SEC’s Chicago Regional Office (CHRO), where he helped supervise and manage all enforcement actions prosecuted by the CHRO. He also was a member of the national trial attorney management team that reported to and consulted with SEC Enforcement Division leadership on litigation, trial, and settlement strategies and practices. Before joining the SEC, Dan was a partner at a large national law firm, where he represented individuals and businesses in commercial litigation in both state and federal courts and in arbitration proceedings.

Jason Yonan is Chief of the Securities and Commodities Fraud Section at the United States Attorney’s Office for the Northern District of Illinois. In that position, Mr. Yonan supervises six Assistant United States Attorneys who focus on securities, commodities, and other investment frauds. Before becoming Section Chief, Mr. Yonan served as a Deputy Chief in the United States Attorney’s Financial Crimes and Special Prosecutions Section. Prior to becoming an Assistant United States Attorney, Mr. Yonan worked at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission in Chicago as a staff attorney and senior attorney in the Division of Enforcement. Before his time at the SEC, Mr. Yonan clerked for U.S. District Court Judge Joan H. Lefkow. Mr. Yonan received his J.D. from the University of Illinois College of Law.

Steven M. Malina, a former Senior Attorney in the SEC’s enforcement branch, focuses his practice on a variety of litigation and regulatory matters with representations of financial services industry clients, hedge fund matters, and securities and general commercial litigation. He represents officers, directors, broker-dealers, investment advisors, commercial banks, investment banks, investment management firms, and public issuers in investigations and disciplinary proceedings initiated by the SEC, CFTC, FINRA, FDIC, NYSE, CBOE, CME, and state regulators. In addition, Steve represents clients in related investor class-action, derivative, and other litigation and arbitration. He has also conducted internal investigations on behalf of publicly traded companies and represented committees and executive officers in internal investigations. Steve has represented brokerage firms and their management in customer-initiated cases, and injunction and arbitration proceedings.
Prior to entering private practice, Steve served as First Vice President and Deputy Regional Counsel for a large financial corporation and was a Senior Attorney in the Branch of Enforcement of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

Rebecca Fike is an experienced litigator focused on SEC and white collar defense and government and internal investigations. As Senior Counsel in the Securities and Exchange Commission’s Division of Enforcement for nearly 10 years, Rebecca conducted all aspects of more than 60 investigations, including three SEC “Top 5” national priority investigations. She often conducted parallel investigations with the Department of Justice and other civil and criminal agencies. The SEC recognized her efforts with an Annual Enforcement Director’s Award for excellence in investigative work, as well as the inaugural Performance Incentive Bonus award for demonstrating an “extraordinary and rare level of performance that significantly surpasses the requirements of the job.”
Rebecca brings clients a current, insider’s perspective on how to best guide them through the reality of today’s SEC investigations. While at the SEC, she brought six successful enforcement recommendations under the new administration and SEC Chairman, giving her a fresh view on the evolving priorities and policies of SEC Commissioners. With this experience, Rebecca is uniquely positioned to work productively with SEC staff while vigorously protecting her clients’ interests.
Since reentering private practice, Rebecca has successfully represented public and private company clients in SEC matters initiated by the Division of Enforcement and Division of Examinations. Opposite the Division of Enforcement, she has effectively navigated her clients through investigations to case closures, successful Wells notice responses, and favorable settlements. Rebecca has conducted investigations on behalf of audit committees or other special committees into whistleblower allegations or other internal reports with potential SEC implications. She is often retained to advise clients on enforcement risks relating to various situations and how to take proactive measures to preclude an enforcement investigation.
Rebecca is a frequent speaker and writer on SEC topics. She was named a Top Author in White Collar Defense in 2023 by JD Supra and regularly appears on panels at industry and legal conferences, webcasts, and client events. She also is co-lead of the firm’s Women’s Initiative for the Washington, DC office.