The Securities and Exchange Commission today instituted “administrative proceedings” against David Tamman, a corporate attorney accused of improperly altering private placement memorandum.
Tamman is a Santa Monica, Calif.-based shareholder at Greenberg Traurig LLP, where he represents both companies and investment funds. Here is his bio, from the firm’s website:
David Tamman represents private and public companies, in addition to private equity and other investment funds. Mr. Tamman regularly advises on a variety of corporate transactions, including the structuring, negotiation and execution of all types of acquisitions, including leveraged buyouts, equity investments, business combinations, financings, and other strategic transactions. Mr. Tamman also advises investors regarding the implementation of exit strategies such as divestitures, public offerings, and recapitalizations.
Mr. Tamman represents publicly held companies, advising on going public transactions, as well as compliance with securities laws, and on corporate governance matters in connection with various transactions, including mergers and acquisitions, tender offers, private placements, and SEC compliance.
The situation revolves around NewPoint Financial Services, a Californian investment firm whose assets were frozen more than a year ago. NewPoint had raised money from investors that it had said would be used for real estate-related investments, but the SEC claims that most of the money actually was used as a loan by NewPoint boss John Farahi.
Tamman represented NewPoint, and allegedly altered the fund’s original private placement memoranda to include information about the loan — knowing that the altered documents would be provided to the SEC as part of its investigation. Moreover, Tamman allegedly ordered his firm’s IT department to erase metadata (e.g., date stamps, etc.). from the altered docs, so that the SEC would be unable to prove that they were different from the originals.
I’ve put in a call to Greenberg Traurig for comment, and will update this post if they respond.
UPDATE: Greenberg Traurig has fired David Tamman. Here is its official statement:
“David Tamman was terminated by the firm. The allegations in the SEC complaint, which he failed to disclose to us, alleged conduct and actions which took place at a former firm and of which we were not aware.”