In the article, the authors discuss the December 2015 decision in United States v. Litvak, in which the Second Circuit Court of Appeals reversed the criminal conviction of Jesse Litvak, a bond trader who had been convicted of securities fraud, false statements and defrauding the government. The charges arose out of alleged misstatements that Litvak made with respect to the prices he charged his customers for residential mortgage backed security (RMBS) bonds. The authors focus on one aspect of the decision—the Court’s rulings regarding the permissibility of offering evidence of third-party conduct, to prove the defendant’s good faith. The authors observe that the Court’s rulings in this regard could have “broad and helpful implications for future trial defenses as it provides a roadmap to introduce evidence that routinely is challenged and excluded.”

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