A fundster scion is headed to the U.S. Supreme Court, ready to fight the SEC over statutes of limitations in a market-timing case.

Yesterday the justices granted certiorari in Gabelli, Marc J., et al. v. SEC. In April 2008 the SEC sued Mario Gabelli's son Marc Gabelli and Gabelli Funds [profile] chief operating officer Bruce Alpert, accusing the duo of allowing London-based hedge fund shop Folkes Asset Management (now called Headstart Adviser) to market time the Gabelli Global Fund PMed by Marc Gabelli. That suit followed Gabelli Funds settling similar claims for $16 million in 2008.

"I intend to clear my name by responding vigorously to this allegation in court," Marc Gabelli stated in 2008.

The allegedly permitted market timing occurred between 1999 and 2002, and the SEC's statute of limitations for penalties is normally five years. Marc Gabelli accused the SEC of taking too long to file the case. In March 2010 the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York agreed and tossed most of the case against the duo. Yet in August 2011 the U.S. Second Circuit Court of Appeals reopened the case, agreeing that the statute of limitations' clock started ticking in September 2003 when the SEC discovered the claim, not in 2002 when the behavior stopped. Marc Gabelli then appealed the case to the Supreme Court.

A Dorsey & Whitney partner, the JD Journal, Law360 and Reuters all reported on the Supreme Court's move to accept the appeal.

The justices will hear the case in their new term, which starts shortly and ends in June. 

Edited by: HFD


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