§78aa Jurisdiction of offenses and suits

Summary

Only United States district courts and courts in U.S. territories can hear crimes or lawsuits under this law. Criminal cases can be started in the district where the bad act happened. Civil suits to enforce duties or stop violations can be filed where the act happened or where the defendant lives, is found, or does business. Legal papers can be served in any district where the defendant lives or is found. If the Commission starts a court case, its subpoenas for witnesses or documents may be served anywhere in the United States, and Rule 45(c)(3)(A)(ii) of the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure does not apply to those subpoenas. Court decisions can be reviewed under sections 1254, 1291, 1292, and 1294 of title 28. The Commission cannot be charged costs in cases under this law that go to the Supreme Court or those other courts. Federal courts also have cases alleging fraud under this law when either (1) actions inside the United States were important steps in the fraud, even if the securities deal happened outside the United States and involved only foreign investors, or (2) actions outside the United States were likely to have a big, foreseeable effect inside the United States.