Litigation Release No. 17617 / July 16, 2002
SEC v. William J. Tishman, et al. Case No. 01-6952-CIV-Dimitrouleas (S.D. Fla.) (filed June 5, 2001)
SEC SETTLES CASES AGAINST WILLIAM J. TISHMAN,
FORMER CEO OF MEDICAL RESEARCH INDUSTRIES, INC.
The Securities and Exchange Commission (Commission) announced today that it settled the civil injunctive action against Defendant William J. Tishman in the matter of SEC v. William J. Tishman et al.. Tishman consented, without admitting or denying the allegations in the Commission's Complaint, to the entry of a Final Judgment of Permanent Injunction and Other Relief (Final Judgment), which the Court entered on July 3, 2002. The Final Judgment permanently enjoins Tishman from violating Sections 5(a), 5(c) and 17(a) of the Securities Act of 1933 ("Securities Act"), Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 ("Exchange Act") and Rule 10b-5 thereunder and bars him from serving as an officer or director of a public company. The Final Judgment further orders that Tishman pay a civil money penalty of $110,000. Based on an order of disgorgement against Tishman in a related state court proceeding, [In re: Assignment for the Benefit of the Creditors of Medical Research Industries, Inc., Assignor, Case No. 99-26596 CA (04), Circuit Court of Miami-Dade County, Florida], the Commission agreed to withdraw its claim for disgorgement against Tishman as part of the settlement.
In its Complaint, the SEC alleged that, between 1996 and mid-1999, Tishman, the former Chief Executive Officer of Medical Research Industries, Inc. (MRI), misappropriated approximately $18 million of offering proceeds and used the funds to pay his personal expenses and his personal gambling debts. MRI was a Ft. Lauderdale based company which allegedly manufactured and marketed homeopathic products, in patch form, for a variety of health concerns, including weight loss, sex, and sleep disorders. Through a series of fraudulent stock offerings, MRI raised approximately $52 million from more than 2,500 investors nationwide, primarily physicians. [SEC v. William J. Tishman, et al., Case No. 01-6952-CIV-Dimitrouleas (S.D. Fla.)(filed June 5, 2001)].