An enlightening mistake

　　一個給人啟發的失誤

　　Defence lawyers reveal more than they meant toin a closely watched legal case;

　　在一個備受關注的法律官司中，辯方律師所公開的消息比原本打算的更多;

　　A rare slip-up by lawyers has helped shed somelight on a high-profile legal battle, the details ofwhich some of the largest Wall Street firms havebeen fighting to keep under wraps. The case concerns allegations of illegal naked shortselling, where the rules have been tightened several times over the past seven years.

　　由律師造成的一個罕見疏漏幫助對一起備受矚目的法律官司有所了解，華爾街的企業巨頭們想方設法讓當中一些細節得以保密。該案針對的指控是非法的裸賣空，涉及的法規在過去7年已被一次次收緊。

　　In 2007 Overstock sued 11 brokers, alleging that they had caused its share price to fall byhelping their clients to naked-short the Utah-based retailer. In a normal short sale, sharesare borrowed with a brokers help before being sold. In the nakedversion, there is no attempt to borrow or locate the stock. This can create fails to deliver,where the trade is not settled when it should be, and messes with the laws of supply anddemand, allowing shorting to take place beyond the natural limits set by the number ofborrowable shares.

　　2007年，Overstock公司起訴過11位經紀人，聲稱他們此前通過幫助客戶裸賣空這家位于猶他州的零售商而導致該公司股價下跌。在一項普通做空當中，股票先是在經紀人的幫助下被借入然后再賣掉。在裸賣空中，無須嘗試借股或者標的股票。這就能夠形成無法交割交易本該完成卻不能完成，也擾亂了供給需求規律，突破可借股票數量這一自然限制而允許發生做空。

　　As the pre-trial discovery period proceeded, Overstock narrowed its focus to two firms,Goldman Sachs and Merrill Lynch, now part of Bank of America. Before the case was set to goto trial in California, however, the judge dismissed it on jurisdictional grounds, ruling that notenough of the alleged wrongdoing had taken place in the state. Overstock appealed andpushed for all of the evidence to be unsealed. The defendants objected. Four media groups,including The Economist, opposed a motion to seal on public-interest grounds. The judgedecided that some of the documents should be released but stayed his ruling, pendingappeal.

　　隨著審前證據公開階段的展開，Overstock把焦點鎖定在兩家公司上：高盛和美林，后者現在已經成為美洲銀行一部分。然而，在案件即將在加州進入審判階段前，法官基于司法權的理由不予受理，裁定在該州發生的所謂違法行為不足。Overstock提起上訴并力爭公開所有證據。被告方反對。包括經濟學人在內的四家傳媒集團反對以公共利益為由而封存證據的動議。法官判定部分檔案應當被公布，但維持原判，中止訴訟程序。

　　That was how things stood until May 11th, when the defendants lawyers served the otherparties in the case with their opposition to a plaintiffs motion. Inadvertently included in thiswas an unredacted version of an earlier filing by Overstock containing excerpts of e-mailsfrom Goldman and Merrill employees.

　　事情就是那樣，直到5月11日被告方律師對原告的一項動議表示反對時卻在該案上成全了對方。無意間把Overstock公司前期未修改的版本包含在當中，其中包括高盛和美林員工的電子郵件節選。

　　In these they discuss deliberately failing to settle client trades. One Merrill executivesuggests the firm might want to consider allowingcustomers to fail, to which a colleaguereplies: We are going to look into that. Another asks: How and when can we prevent thedelivery [of shares]? To a question from a large client about efforts at cleaning up fails, aGoldman man says that we will let you fail. Compliance officers questioned this behaviour,according to the filing. One at Merrill is quoted calling it totally unacceptablewe arefailing when we have over a million shares of stock available.

　　在這些當中他們慎重討論了客戶交易無法完成一事。一位美林高層建議公司也許想要考慮讓客戶失敗，一位同事則回復到：我們將對此進行研究。另一位問道：我們能夠何時、用怎樣的方式防止股票交割?針對一個由大客戶提出的關于努力澄清失敗的問題，一位高盛員工說道我們將會讓你失敗。文件顯示，合規性監察官員質疑這一行為。一位美林被引述曾稱此事 絕對無法接受我們手上有超過一百萬股股票，但卻不予交割。

　　The e-mails also suggest close commercial links between the two firms and at least onetrading outfit that was a target of regulatory probes into shorting violations, SBA Trading. AMerrill employee forwards a sanctions order against SBAs Scott Arenstein to a counterpartat Goldman, referring to Mr Arenstein as our boy and asking: You think there will be anyfallout on clearing firms? In another e-mail, the deputy head of Goldmanssecurities-lending group describes Mr Arenstein as being the other side of a lot of ouractivity.

　　電子郵件中同樣暗示了存在于兩家公司之間緊密的商業聯系，以及至少一家受法規限制的交易機構SBA交易正在探索違規賣空。一位美林員工向高盛的同行發出了對SBA的Scott Arenstein的批準命令，提及Arenstein先生是我們的人并質問你以為清算公司還會有任何附帶后果嗎?在另一封電子郵件中，高盛的證券借貸部副總把Arenstein先生描述為是我們許多業務的對應方。

　　Other missives suggest a cavalier attitude to the rules. The president of one of Merrillsstock-clearing businesses responds to internal concerns about failed trades thus: Fuck thecompliance areaprocedures, schmecedures. He later assured the court that thisstatement was a joke, according to the filing.

　　其他信件則暗示了對法規的輕慢態度。美林公司一項股票清算業務的主席這樣回應了關于交易失敗的內部關注：去他媽的合規性部分方案、程序。文件顯示，他后來向法院保證說這句話是在開玩笑。

　　Goldman and Merrill deny that they participated in unlawful naked shorting. Theirsupporters argue that the legal action brought by Overstock is a crude tactic by itsmercurial boss, Patrick Byrne, to divert attention from its long history ofunderperformance. Some question the link between failed trades and naked shorting.

　　高盛和美林否認他們參與了非法的裸賣空。他們的支持者辯護說這起由Overstock挑起的官司是該公司狡猾多端的老板Patrick Byrne的一個粗糙戰術，旨在將注意力從該公司長期的欠佳表現轉移開來。一些人質疑在交易失敗與裸賣空之間的聯系。

　　Nevertheless, the release of the e-mail excerpts will have done the brokers no favours. Theysuggest that trades were being intentionally failed; that some of the firms internalpolicemen were unhappy with the explanations they received for the proliferation of fails;and that at least one executive had an unusual attitude towards compliance. The e-mailsare just a small part of the material unearthed during the four-year discovery process. If thecourt of appeal unstays the partial unsealing order, there will be much more to pore over.

　　雖然如此，電子郵件節選內容的曝光對經紀人來說可不是好事。它們表明了交易是被故意攪黃的;一些公司內部監管人員對收到的交易失敗擴大化的解釋并不滿意，而且至少有一位高管對合規性持不同尋常的態度。這些電子郵件只是這四年的證據公示階段中眾多被發掘出的材料中的冰山一角。如果上訴法院對有限的開啟令不予支持，那么將會有更多材料等著細讀。

　　An enlightening mistake

　　一個給人啟發的失誤

　　Defence lawyers reveal more than they meant toin a closely watched legal case;

　　在一個備受關注的法律官司中，辯方律師所公開的消息比原本打算的更多;

　　A rare slip-up by lawyers has helped shed somelight on a high-profile legal battle, the details ofwhich some of the largest Wall Street firms havebeen fighting to keep under wraps. The case concerns allegations of illegal naked shortselling, where the rules have been tightened several times over the past seven years.

　　由律師造成的一個罕見疏漏幫助對一起備受矚目的法律官司有所了解，華爾街的企業巨頭們想方設法讓當中一些細節得以保密。該案針對的指控是非法的裸賣空，涉及的法規在過去7年已被一次次收緊。

　　In 2007 Overstock sued 11 brokers, alleging that they had caused its share price to fall byhelping their clients to naked-short the Utah-based retailer. In a normal short sale, sharesare borrowed with a brokers help before being sold. In the nakedversion, there is no attempt to borrow or locate the stock. This can create fails to deliver,where the trade is not settled when it should be, and messes with the laws of supply anddemand, allowing shorting to take place beyond the natural limits set by the number ofborrowable shares.

　　2007年，Overstock公司起訴過11位經紀人，聲稱他們此前通過幫助客戶裸賣空這家位于猶他州的零售商而導致該公司股價下跌。在一項普通做空當中，股票先是在經紀人的幫助下被借入然后再賣掉。在裸賣空中，無須嘗試借股或者標的股票。這就能夠形成無法交割交易本該完成卻不能完成，也擾亂了供給需求規律，突破可借股票數量這一自然限制而允許發生做空。

　　As the pre-trial discovery period proceeded, Overstock narrowed its focus to two firms,Goldman Sachs and Merrill Lynch, now part of Bank of America. Before the case was set to goto trial in California, however, the judge dismissed it on jurisdictional grounds, ruling that notenough of the alleged wrongdoing had taken place in the state. Overstock appealed andpushed for all of the evidence to be unsealed. The defendants objected. Four media groups,including The Economist, opposed a motion to seal on public-interest grounds. The judgedecided that some of the documents should be released but stayed his ruling, pendingappeal.

　　隨著審前證據公開階段的展開，Overstock把焦點鎖定在兩家公司上：高盛和美林，后者現在已經成為美洲銀行一部分。然而，在案件即將在加州進入審判階段前，法官基于司法權的理由不予受理，裁定在該州發生的所謂違法行為不足。Overstock提起上訴并力爭公開所有證據。被告方反對。包括經濟學人在內的四家傳媒集團反對以公共利益為由而封存證據的動議。法官判定部分檔案應當被公布，但維持原判，中止訴訟程序。

　　That was how things stood until May 11th, when the defendants lawyers served the otherparties in the case with their opposition to a plaintiffs motion. Inadvertently included in thiswas an unredacted version of an earlier filing by Overstock containing excerpts of e-mailsfrom Goldman and Merrill employees.

　　事情就是那樣，直到5月11日被告方律師對原告的一項動議表示反對時卻在該案上成全了對方。無意間把Overstock公司前期未修改的版本包含在當中，其中包括高盛和美林員工的電子郵件節選。

　　In these they discuss deliberately failing to settle client trades. One Merrill executivesuggests the firm might want to consider allowingcustomers to fail, to which a colleaguereplies: We are going to look into that. Another asks: How and when can we prevent thedelivery [of shares]? To a question from a large client about efforts at cleaning up fails, aGoldman man says that we will let you fail. Compliance officers questioned this behaviour,according to the filing. One at Merrill is quoted calling it totally unacceptablewe arefailing when we have over a million shares of stock available.

　　在這些當中他們慎重討論了客戶交易無法完成一事。一位美林高層建議公司也許想要考慮讓客戶失敗，一位同事則回復到：我們將對此進行研究。另一位問道：我們能夠何時、用怎樣的方式防止股票交割?針對一個由大客戶提出的關于努力澄清失敗的問題，一位高盛員工說道我們將會讓你失敗。文件顯示，合規性監察官員質疑這一行為。一位美林被引述曾稱此事 絕對無法接受我們手上有超過一百萬股股票，但卻不予交割。

　　The e-mails also suggest close commercial links between the two firms and at least onetrading outfit that was a target of regulatory probes into shorting violations, SBA Trading. AMerrill employee forwards a sanctions order against SBAs Scott Arenstein to a counterpartat Goldman, referring to Mr Arenstein as our boy and asking: You think there will be anyfallout on clearing firms? In another e-mail, the deputy head of Goldmanssecurities-lending group describes Mr Arenstein as being the other side of a lot of ouractivity.

　　電子郵件中同樣暗示了存在于兩家公司之間緊密的商業聯系，以及至少一家受法規限制的交易機構SBA交易正在探索違規賣空。一位美林員工向高盛的同行發出了對SBA的Scott Arenstein的批準命令，提及Arenstein先生是我們的人并質問你以為清算公司還會有任何附帶后果嗎?在另一封電子郵件中，高盛的證券借貸部副總把Arenstein先生描述為是我們許多業務的對應方。

　　Other missives suggest a cavalier attitude to the rules. The president of one of Merrillsstock-clearing businesses responds to internal concerns about failed trades thus: Fuck thecompliance areaprocedures, schmecedures. He later assured the court that thisstatement was a joke, according to the filing.

　　其他信件則暗示了對法規的輕慢態度。美林公司一項股票清算業務的主席這樣回應了關于交易失敗的內部關注：去他媽的合規性部分方案、程序。文件顯示，他后來向法院保證說這句話是在開玩笑。

　　Goldman and Merrill deny that they participated in unlawful naked shorting. Theirsupporters argue that the legal action brought by Overstock is a crude tactic by itsmercurial boss, Patrick Byrne, to divert attention from its long history ofunderperformance. Some question the link between failed trades and naked shorting.

　　高盛和美林否認他們參與了非法的裸賣空。他們的支持者辯護說這起由Overstock挑起的官司是該公司狡猾多端的老板Patrick Byrne的一個粗糙戰術，旨在將注意力從該公司長期的欠佳表現轉移開來。一些人質疑在交易失敗與裸賣空之間的聯系。

　　Nevertheless, the release of the e-mail excerpts will have done the brokers no favours. Theysuggest that trades were being intentionally failed; that some of the firms internalpolicemen were unhappy with the explanations they received for the proliferation of fails;and that at least one executive had an unusual attitude towards compliance. The e-mailsare just a small part of the material unearthed during the four-year discovery process. If thecourt of appeal unstays the partial unsealing order, there will be much more to pore over.

　　雖然如此，電子郵件節選內容的曝光對經紀人來說可不是好事。它們表明了交易是被故意攪黃的;一些公司內部監管人員對收到的交易失敗擴大化的解釋并不滿意，而且至少有一位高管對合規性持不同尋常的態度。這些電子郵件只是這四年的證據公示階段中眾多被發掘出的材料中的冰山一角。如果上訴法院對有限的開啟令不予支持，那么將會有更多材料等著細讀。