Orange County White Collar Crimes Lawyer

Aggressive Representation in Southern California & Nationwide for Federal Charges

White collar crimes are violations of laws involving theft in some form. The penalties for a white collar crime conviction are serious, so it is advisable to enlist an experienced attorney on your side. 

White collar crimes are offenses at the state and federal levels. At Law Office of Diane C. Bass, Attorney Diane C. Bass has decades of professional experience and has handled some of the most significant cases in the history of the Central District of California. She can fight aggressively for your side in court while seeking to protect you against harsh and unfair accusations. Putting her in your corner as soon as you are under investigation by law enforcement is vital; this gives our firm the time to thoroughly investigate the situation and begin building a defense strategy.

Learn how the law impacts your situation and your options in a consultation with our Orange County white collar crimes attorney. Get started by calling (949) 990-4195 or contact us online.

What Is Securities & Investment Fraud?

Securities fraud crimes involve deceptive or fraudulent activities in the stock or commodities markets. The term “securities” broadly encompasses all types of investments, such as municipal bonds, corporate stocks, banknotes, and investment contracts. 

Securities fraud usually occurs when someone involved with one of these investments (e.g., professional financial analyst, securities broker, corporation) lies, cheats, or steals to gain an economic advantage. Securities fraud is typically perpetrated through schemes inducing others to willingly invest money or something else of value. A person can commit securities fraud even if they never actually profit from the activity; if they engage in fraud with the intent to profit, that is enough to be accused of the crime.

A conviction for securities fraud can lead to significant civil or criminal penalties. A convicted individual could face fines as high as $5,000,000, while other circumstances could warrant $10,000 or more. A conviction can also result in a five-year federal sentence for every offense. Probation may also be an option, depending on the severity of the offense.

What Are Wire Fraud Crimes?

Wire fraud is a federal crime when someone voluntarily and intentionally uses an interstate communications device (e.g., a telephone, fax machine, or e-mail) to send, receive, or otherwise transmit messages across state lines to defraud another of value. 

These crimes are becoming increasingly prevalent as more business transactions use the Internet. An individual cannot accidentally commit wire fraud; federal prosecutors must show that a defendant acted with the intent to fraudulently deprive someone of money, property, or something of value.

A wire fraud conviction does not require the alleged victim to lose money. If you attempted to obtain money, that is enough to be convicted. Additionally, every act of wire fraud constitutes a separate offense. If 10 phone calls were made as part of the scheme, you can be charged with 10 separate acts of wire fraud.

Wire Fraud Penalties

The penalties for wire fraud could be fines of up to 20 years in prison. If the scheme affects a financial institution or is connected to a presidentially declared disaster or emergency, the potential penalties could reach up to $1,000,000 in fines and up to 30 years in prison. An individual accused of wire fraud could pursue a few defense arguments, such as claiming good faith or “puffery.”

In legal contexts, puffery refers to exaggerated or boastful statements about a product or service that are so vague or subjective that they cannot be objectively measured or proven true or false. These statements are often seen as mere sales talk or marketing hype and are not intended to be taken literally by consumers.

Puffery used in defense against wire fraud could be invoked to argue that any misleading statements made were not fraudulent but were instead non-specific, opinion-based promotions that did not intend to deceive.