2024-01-31 sec-litreleases litigation_release 65 KB 2,769 chars

SEC v. Comer Capital Group, LLC; and Brandon L. Comer, No. LR-25935, Northern District of Illinois (Jan. 31, 2024) — Press Release

raw: Comer Capital Group, LLC and Brandon L. Comer

Comer Capital Group, LLC and Brandon L. Comer, No. LR-25935 (Jan. 31, 2024)

Caption
SEC v. Comer Capital Group, LLC, et al.
Source JSON
summary

The SEC obtained final judgment against Comer Capital Group and Brandon L. Comer for breaching fiduciary duties during a $6 million municipal bond offering, resulting in $500,000 in extra interest costs.

paragraph

The SEC charged Comer Capital Group and Brandon L. Comer with breaching fiduciary duties during a $6 million municipal bond offering for the Harvey Public Library District. The defendants failed to properly advise on underwriter selection and bond pricing, leading to over $500,000 in additional interest costs for the client. The final judgment requires Comer Capital to pay $25,000 in disgorgement plus interest, alongside civil penalties of $30,000 and $20,000 for the firm and Comer, respectively.

narrative

The SEC obtained a final judgment against Mississippi-based municipal advisor Comer Capital Group, LLC, and its managing partner, Brandon L. Comer, for breaching fiduciary duties. The defendants were tasked with assisting the Harvey Public Library District with a $6 million bond offering, specifically regarding underwriter selection and bond pricing. The SEC alleged that the defendants failed to provide adequate advice on underwriter qualifications and failed to ensure fair bond pricing, which ultimately cost the District over $500,000 in additional interest. To resolve the charges under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the defendants consented to a judgment without admitting or denying the allegations. Comer Capital was ordered to pay $25,000 in disgorgement plus prejudgment interest. Additionally, Comer Capital and Brandon L. Comer were assessed civil penalties of $30,000 and $20,000, respectively.

Enriched metadata

Scheme
financial-fraud (95%)
Court
Northern District of Illinois
Outcome
settled
Disgorgement
$25,000
Victim loss
$500,000
Entity
Comer Capital Group, LLC
CIK
0001616021
Classified financial-fraud(confidence 95%). EDGAR detection: forms 10-K/10-Q/8-K/NT 10-K· recall 67% / precision 23%. detection rule →
Statutes
Section 15B(c)(1) of the Securities Exchange ActSection 15B(c)(1) of the Securities Exchange Act
Parties
Securities and Exchange CommissionComer Capital Group, LLCBrandon L. Comer
Keywords
comercomer capitalcapitalcapital groupbrandon comercapital comersecsecurities exchangelibraryexchange commissionbreaching fiduciarygroupllcbrandonbonds

Extracted insights

Dollar amounts 5
  • $6.00M $6 million $1M–$10M
  • $500K $500,000 $100K–$1M
  • $30K $30,000 $10K–$100K
  • $25K $25,000 $10K–$100K
  • $20K $20,000 $10K–$100K
Entities 10
  • company comer capital group, llc
  • organization Comer Capital Group, LLC
  • person fiduciary duty
  • organization Library District
  • person michael foster
  • person Natalie Garner
  • agency sec investigation
  • agency sec litigation
  • agency Securities and Exchange Commission
  • organization Securities and Exchange Commission
Triples 11
  • Securities And Exchange Commission obtained final judgment against Comer Capital Group, Llc and Brandon L. Comer
  • Comer Capital Group, Llc and Brandon L. Comer breached fiduciary duty
  • Securities And Exchange Commission charged Comer Capital Group, Llc and Brandon L. Comer with breaching fiduciary duty
  • Comer Capital Group, Llc paid $25,000 in disgorgement
  • Comer Capital Group, Llc and Comer paid civil penalties of $30,000 and $20,000
  • Library District hired Comer Capital Group, Llc and Brandon L. Comer
  • Comer Capital Group, Llc and Brandon L. Comer failed to protect interests of Library District
  • Securities And Exchange Commission alleged Comer Capital Group, Llc and Comer did not provide advice on underwriter qualifications
  • Library District will pay more than $500,000 in additional interest
  • Natalie Garner conducted SEC investigation
  • Michael Foster led SEC litigation
View original SEC litigation releasesec.gov
Extracted body text (2,769c) 
U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION Litigation Release No. 25935 /January 31, 2024 Securities and Exchange Commission v. Comer Capital Group, LLC and Brandon L. Comer, No. 19-civ-04324 (N.D. Ill.) filed June 27, 2019 SEC Obtains Final Judgment Against Municipal Advisor Charged with Breaching Fiduciary Duty On January 30, 2024, the Securities and Exchange Commission obtained a final judgment against defendants Comer Capital Group, LLC and Brandon L. Comer, whom the SEC previously charged with breaching their fiduciary duty in connection with a $6 million municipal bond offering by the Harvey Public Library District in Harvey, Illinois. The SEC’s complaint was filed on June 27, 2019 in federal district court in Chicago, Illinois. The complaint alleged that Mississippi-based municipal advisor Comer Capital Group, LLC and its managing partner, Brandon L. Comer, failed to protect the interests of their client, the Library District. According to the complaint, the Library District hired Comer Capital and Comer to assist with the bond offering process, including to provide advice on: (1) the selection of an experienced underwriter, and (2) the pricing of the bonds. The SEC alleged that Comer Capital and Comer did not provide advice to the Library District on the qualifications of the underwriter and, upon learning that the underwriter was having difficulty finding investors to buy the bonds, did not consider or recommend that the District consider engaging a different or an additional broker-dealer to underwrite the bonds. The SEC also alleged that Comer Capital and Comer did not provide the Library District with the information and advice needed to determine whether the price of the bonds was fair and reasonable. According to the SEC’s complaint, the price was not fair and reasonable and the mispricing of the bonds will cause the Library District to pay more than $500,000 in additional interest over the life of the bonds. The complaint charged the defendants with breaching their fiduciary duties in violation of Section 15B(c)(1) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Without admitting or denying the allegations in the SEC’s complaint, Comer Capital and Comer consented to entry of a final judgment ordering Comer Capital to pay disgorgement in the amount of $25,000 plus prejudgment interest thereon. The final judgment also ordered Comer Capital and Comer to pay civil penalties in the amounts of $30,000 and $20,000, respectively. The SEC’s investigation was conducted by Natalie Garner of the Public Finance Abuse Unit and the Chicago Regional Office with assistance from Joseph O. Chimienti and Jonathan Wilcox, and was supervised by Brian D. Fagel. The SEC’s litigation was led by Michael Foster of the Chicago Regional Office.
OCR text (2,769c · html-text · 99% conf) 
U.S. SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION Litigation Release No. 25935 /January 31, 2024 Securities and Exchange Commission v. Comer Capital Group, LLC and Brandon L. Comer, No. 19-civ-04324 (N.D. Ill.) filed June 27, 2019 SEC Obtains Final Judgment Against Municipal Advisor Charged with Breaching Fiduciary Duty On January 30, 2024, the Securities and Exchange Commission obtained a final judgment against defendants Comer Capital Group, LLC and Brandon L. Comer, whom the SEC previously charged with breaching their fiduciary duty in connection with a $6 million municipal bond offering by the Harvey Public Library District in Harvey, Illinois. The SEC’s complaint was filed on June 27, 2019 in federal district court in Chicago, Illinois. The complaint alleged that Mississippi-based municipal advisor Comer Capital Group, LLC and its managing partner, Brandon L. Comer, failed to protect the interests of their client, the Library District. According to the complaint, the Library District hired Comer Capital and Comer to assist with the bond offering process, including to provide advice on: (1) the selection of an experienced underwriter, and (2) the pricing of the bonds. The SEC alleged that Comer Capital and Comer did not provide advice to the Library District on the qualifications of the underwriter and, upon learning that the underwriter was having difficulty finding investors to buy the bonds, did not consider or recommend that the District consider engaging a different or an additional broker-dealer to underwrite the bonds. The SEC also alleged that Comer Capital and Comer did not provide the Library District with the information and advice needed to determine whether the price of the bonds was fair and reasonable. According to the SEC’s complaint, the price was not fair and reasonable and the mispricing of the bonds will cause the Library District to pay more than $500,000 in additional interest over the life of the bonds. The complaint charged the defendants with breaching their fiduciary duties in violation of Section 15B(c)(1) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934. Without admitting or denying the allegations in the SEC’s complaint, Comer Capital and Comer consented to entry of a final judgment ordering Comer Capital to pay disgorgement in the amount of $25,000 plus prejudgment interest thereon. The final judgment also ordered Comer Capital and Comer to pay civil penalties in the amounts of $30,000 and $20,000, respectively. The SEC’s investigation was conducted by Natalie Garner of the Public Finance Abuse Unit and the Chicago Regional Office with assistance from Joseph O. Chimienti and Jonathan Wilcox, and was supervised by Brian D. Fagel. The SEC’s litigation was led by Michael Foster of the Chicago Regional Office.