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takyon writes:

The U.S. Supreme Court will hear a case about insider trading for the first time in two decades:

U.S. Supreme Court justices suggested they will make it easier to prosecute Wall Street figures for insider trading as the court heard arguments on the subject for the first time in two decades. Taking up the conviction of onetime Chicago grocery wholesaler Bassam Yacoub Salman, the justices weighed Wednesday whether someone can be sent to prison for making trades when the insider who provided the tip wasn't looking to make any money. A majority of the eight justices indicated a willingness to uphold the conviction.

A victory for the government would be a boost for prosecutors and the Securities and Exchange Commission, restoring some of the leverage they lost in 2014 when a federal appeals court in Manhattan imposed new requirements on government lawyers. The New York court's ruling undercut U.S. Attorney Preet Bharara's eight-year crackdown on Wall Street cheating and led to more than a dozen insider-trading convictions being thrown out. Justice Stephen Breyer said that ruling had changed decades-old rules for insider trading by requiring prosecutors to show that the insider received a concrete benefit. Salman's lawyer is urging the court to adopt that standard nationwide.

Also at Reuters and The New York Times .

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