George Geek is a computer programmer who tired of working for others and started his own company. He convinced forty investors that he could design software that would rival Microsoft, and sold them each a 10% partnership interest in his firm for $25,000. He designed and printed up the partnership certificates himself. George told the investors that he had a product that was on the verge of being marketable and that when it did-within the next two months-revenues would pour into the company, and he would begin paying dividends. He told them they could expect a 20% return on their money this year, with even higher returns in the years to come. As it turned out, George wasn’t quite the programmer he thought he was, and he wasn’t able to get all the bugs out of the program to make it marketable within the promised two months. Within a year, George had tired of the project and was too busy picking up chicks in his new Corvette when he wasn’t on the island of St. Bart overseeing the construction of his new beach mansion-and picking up chicks. His activities, of course, were financed by the extremely generous “salary” he paid himself from the investors’ monies. Under the Uniform Securities Act, do the investors have any civil claims against George?
Explanation
Answer: C - Yes. The investors have a civil claim against George under the Uniform Securities Act and can sue for the return of their original investment, plus interest, reasonable attorneys’ fees, and court costs. There is no provision for pain and suffering. Partnership interests fall under the definition of securities, so the Uniform Securities Act does apply, and George sold the interests illegally. As securities, they were required to be registered with the state before they could be sold.
