April 29, 2024
Willkie’s recent victory on behalf of client Rumble Inc., an online video streaming platform, was featured in Law360’s How They Won It column, focusing on the legal strategy and execution that led to a favorable outcome for our client. The Willkie team, led by partner William Stellmach and counsel Sean Sandoloski, recently brought a swift resolution to a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) investigation of Rumble.
The investigation, launched in November 2023, followed a campaign by a short-seller who had purported to reveal that Rumble inflated its user numbers in a classic fraud on the market and its investors. After the SEC initiated the investigation, its Freedom of Information Act office happened to confirm the existence of the agency’s confidential, non-public investigation, resulting in a run on Rumble’s stock.
Bill and Sean spoke with Law360 about the matter, highlighting that they had two things in mind when they began working with Rumble: transparency and aggressiveness. "Our client had done nothing wrong, so our concern wasn't the SEC staff reaching an incorrect conclusion. Our concern was how fast they would reach a conclusion," Bill commented. "We were essentially in a race against the clock because SEC investigations average about 22 months ... but that wasn't an acceptable timeline when our client was facing a coordinated short-seller attack."
The article highlights that both Bill and Sean said they also had an extra advantage in handling the SEC's inquiry because they both previously worked for federal agencies, including the SEC and the U.S. Department of Justice.
Regarding the prominence of short seller attacks, Sean commented, “I think short-sellers will continue doing what they're doing, running the playbook that they run and getting the gains they get from their short positions until there is some sort of enforcement action or guidance from the Department of Justice or SEC.”
Learn more about Willkie securing a swift resolution to the SEC’s investigation of Rumble here.
Read the full Law360 article here.
The investigation, launched in November 2023, followed a campaign by a short-seller who had purported to reveal that Rumble inflated its user numbers in a classic fraud on the market and its investors. After the SEC initiated the investigation, its Freedom of Information Act office happened to confirm the existence of the agency’s confidential, non-public investigation, resulting in a run on Rumble’s stock.
Bill and Sean spoke with Law360 about the matter, highlighting that they had two things in mind when they began working with Rumble: transparency and aggressiveness. "Our client had done nothing wrong, so our concern wasn't the SEC staff reaching an incorrect conclusion. Our concern was how fast they would reach a conclusion," Bill commented. "We were essentially in a race against the clock because SEC investigations average about 22 months ... but that wasn't an acceptable timeline when our client was facing a coordinated short-seller attack."
The article highlights that both Bill and Sean said they also had an extra advantage in handling the SEC's inquiry because they both previously worked for federal agencies, including the SEC and the U.S. Department of Justice.
Regarding the prominence of short seller attacks, Sean commented, “I think short-sellers will continue doing what they're doing, running the playbook that they run and getting the gains they get from their short positions until there is some sort of enforcement action or guidance from the Department of Justice or SEC.”
Learn more about Willkie securing a swift resolution to the SEC’s investigation of Rumble here.
Read the full Law360 article here.
