Richard Rutherford v. Securities and Exchange Commission

ORDER

The Memorandum disposition filed December 22, 1987, is redesignated as an authored Opinion by Judge Norris.

OPINION

Appellant Rutherford seeks review of an order of the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “Commission”) that bars Rutherford from membership or affiliation with the New York Stock Exchange (“NYSE”) for two months. The Commission adopted the findings of a three-member panel representing the NYSE which conducted hearings and heard testimony regarding allegations of Rutherford’s misconduct. The jurisdiction of this court to review decisions of the Commission resides with 15 U.S.C. § 78y(a)(l) (1982). We review the factual findings of the Commission to determine if they are supported by substantial evidence. See 15 U.S.C. § 78y(a)(4) (1982). The Commission’s conclusions of law are to be set aside if arbitrary, capricious, or otherwise not in accordance with law. See 5 U.S.C. 706(2)(A) (1982).

On March 18, 1983, Rutherford was hired by Dean Witter Reynolds, Inc. (“Dean Witter”) to work at its branch office in Ventu-ra, California as a registered representative of that firm. On April 6,1983, Rutherford completed and signed a Uniform Application for Securities…