Allan Horwich
Partner
Allan Horwich has practiced for more than 40 years in corporate counseling and litigation.
He has advised corporations, financial institutions, investors, securities professionals and boards of directors on a wide range of questions, including disclosure, corporate governance, corporate compliance, fiduciary duty and insider trading.
He also has applied his experience in addressing issues of deception and manipulation in the securities markets to the expanding regulatory authority over deception and manipulation in the energy markets, and has litigated utility matters in regulatory forums.
During his career he has litigated cases, including individual, class actions and derivative claims, throughout the country under all federal securities laws and represented clients in Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) investigations and proceedings.
Experience
Significant matters in which Mr. Horwich has been or is involved include:
- Representation of a Special Litigation Committee of a board of a Fortune 200 company
- Representation of a bank holding company in a putative securities class action
- Internal investigation of accounting and other irregularities at finance subsidiary of bank holding company
- Representation and counseling of corporations and individuals in accounting fraud litigation and investigations
- Representation of a large publicly held savings institution in a securities class action challenging the adequacy of disclosure in public offering documents and corporate reports
Publications
Mr. Horwich has published numerous articles in scholarly journals and elsewhere. Some of his recent and other noteworthy publications include:
"Role of Rule 10b5-1 in Securities Litigation," Law 360 (January 12, 2009)
"Is There A Breach In The Breakwater Of The Statutory Safe Harbor For Forward-Looking Statements?" Wall Street Lawyer (September 2004)
"New Form 8-K and Real-Time Disclosure," The Review of Securities & Commodities Regulation (June 2004)
"Audit Committees," RealCorporateLawyer.com (December 2003)
"The Role and Responsibilities of Audit Committees," Banking & Financial Services Policy Report (November 2003)
"Special Litigation Committees: Who the Members Are May Be More Important Than What the Committee Does," Wall Street Lawyer (July 2003)
"Section 11 of the Securities Act: The Cornerstone Needs Some Tuckpointing," 58 The Business Lawyer 1 (2002)
"The Neglected Relationship of Materiality and Recklessness in Actions Under Rule 10b-5," 55 The Business Lawyer 1023 (2000)
"Possession Versus Use: Is There a Causation Element in the Prohibition on Insider Trading?" 52 The Business Lawyer 1235 (1997) (cited with approval in SEC v. Adler, 137 F.3d 1325, 1334 n. 23 (11th Cir. 1998) and U.S. v. Smith, 155 F.3d 1051, 1066 n. 23 (9th Cir. 1998))
"Bank Fiduciaries with Material Inside Information: Responsibilities and Risks," 113 The Banking Law Journal 4 (1996)
"Securities Law: Review of the Law of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit," Chicago-Kent Law Review, Vol. 50 (1973)
Speeches and Presentations
"Critical Issues Faced in Crafting Financial Regulatory Reform," Casino Club Monday Class, Chicago, Ill. (March 29, 2010)
"Altering the Landscape of Securities Regulation," Navigating the Securities Landscape, Chicago Bar Association Securities Law Committee Conference, Chicago, Ill. (March 18, 2010)
"Securities Enforcement and Litigation: 2009 Recap and 2010 Predictions," Duff & Phelps, Chicago, Ill. (February 11, 2010)
"There are No Answers in the Back of the Book — Policy Issues Implicated by Proposals for Financial Regulatory Reform," Shirley Ryan Learning for Life Program, Northwestern University, Chicago, Ill. (November 18, 2009)
"Research Roundtable — Corporate Governance," (invited participant) (discussion of Corporate Governance by Macey and The Rise of the Uncorporation by Ribstein)," Searle Center, Northwestern University School of Law, Chicago, Ill. (April 30-May 1, 2009)
"Mechanics of the Meltdown," Northwestern University School of Law Attorneys General Education Program, Chicago, Ill. (April 23, 2009)
"The Aftermath [of the Financial Meltdown]: The Proper Role of Civil and Criminal Enforcement in the Wake of the Financial Crisis," Northwestern University School of Law Attorneys General Education Program, Chicago, Ill. (April 23, 2009)
"The Federal Government as Shareholder and Creditor," The Crash of '08 and the Government's Response: Implications for Securities Law in 2009, Chicago Bar Association Securities Law Committee Conference, Chicago, Ill. (March 19, 2009)
"Financial Regulation after the Financial Crisis," (Panelist) Northwestern Law School Small Business Opportunity Conference, Chicago, Ill. (February 28, 2009)
"Recent Trends and Probable Future for Financial Services Sector," Allstate Compliance and Ethics Leadership Conference, Northbrook, Ill. (Feb. 18, 2009)
"The Financial Crisis," (Panelist) Northwestern University School of Law Third Annual Civil Justice Symposium, Chicago, Ill. (December 8, 2008)
"The Importance of Market Impact in Securities Fraud Claims," Illinois CPA Society, Business Valuation, Litigation and Fraud Group, Chicago, Ill. (November 8, 2006)
"New Market Behavior Rules, How They Impact Market Manipulation & FERC's Expanded Penalty Authority," (Panelist) Energy Bar Association Annual Meeting, Washington D.C. (April 27, 2006)
"The Impact of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act on Civil Litigation," Chicago Bar Association Litigation Committee, Chicago, Ill. (March 13, 2006)
"The Energy Policy Act of 2005," (Panelist) Energy Bar Association, Western Chapter, Fifth Annual Meeting, San Francisco, Calif. (February 24, 2006)
"Rx for Director Liability: Lessons for General Counsel from the WorldCom and Enron Settlements," (Panelist)PricewaterhouseCoopers General Counsel Forum, Chicago (June 2005)
Awards and Honors
Life Fellow, American Bar Foundation
Leading Lawyer — Securities and Venture Finance Law, Illinois Leading Lawyers Network
Who's Who In American Law
Who's Who in America
Who's Who In The Midwest
Who's Who in the World
Education
University of Chicago Law School
(J.D.,
1969)
Princeton University
(A.B., cum laude,
1966)
Teaching Appointments
Senior Lecturer, Northwestern University School of Law (2000-present)
Federal securities law, Securities litigation (including class actions), Business associations
Professional Memberships
Wall Street Lawyer
Editorial Advisory Board
