SEC v. George Georgiou

── SEC v. George Georgiou ── Court: Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit Date: May 14, 2026 Category: General NOT PRECEDENTIAL UNITED STATES COURT OF APPEALS FOR THE THIRD CIRCUIT ___________ No. 23-1751 __________ SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION v. GEORGE GEORGIOU, Appellant ____________________________________ On Appeal from the United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania (D.C. Civil Action No. 2:09-cv-00616 ) District Judge: Honorable Michael M. Baylson ____________________________________ Submitted Pursuant to Third Circuit LAR 34.1(a) May 8, 2026 Before: BIBAS, CHUNG, and BOVE, Circuit Judges (Opinion filed: May 14, 2026) ___________ OPINION* ___________ PER CURIAM George Georgiou appeals pro se from the District Court’s summary judgment in favor of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on its claims that Georgiou * This disposition is not an opinion of the full Court and pursuant to I.O.P. 5.7 does not constitute binding precedent. committed securities fraud. We will affirm. From 2004 through 2008, Georgiou and his co-conspirators engaged in a stock fraud scheme resulting in more than $55 million in actual losses. In February 2009, the SEC brought this civil enforcement action against Georgiou alleging that his fraudulent trading practices and market manipulation violated Section 17(a) of the Securities Act, 15 U.S.C. § 77q(a); Section 10(b) of the Exchange Act, 15 U.S.C. § 78j(b); and Rule 10b-5 thereunder, 17 C.F.R. § 240.10b-5. Concurrent with the SEC’s case, the Department of Justice (DOJ) filed criminal charges against Georgiou based on the same fraudulent scheme to manipulate the market for the same securities. The civil action was stayed pending completion of the criminal trial. In February 2010, a jury found Georgiou guilty on all charges, including two of the same violations of the Exchange Act at issue here—securities fraud under Section 10(b) and Rule 10b-5. Georgiou was sentenced to 300 months’ imprisonment and ordered to pay over $55 million in restitution.1 The District Court also granted the Government’s motion for a $26 million forfeiture judgment. This Court affirmed the conviction and sentence on direct appeal, see United States v. Georgiou, 777 F.3d 125 (3d Cir. 2015), and the Supreme Court denied certiorari, see Georgiou v. United States, 577 U.S. 954 (2015). Georgiou has filed a “staggering number” of unsuccessful post-judgment motions. Dist. Ct. Mem. 2, ECF No. 59. 1 At sentencing, the District Judge commented that “[Georgiou] obstructed justice by perjuring himself in this court. The evidence in this case was overwhelming. [Georgiou] sat there and listened to it, and yet he took the witness stand and gave evidence that really left the court stunned.” Mem. 2 n.1, ECF No. 59. 2  In January 2023, the District Court transferred the civil case back to the active docket and granted summary judgment for the SEC, holding that Georgiou’s civil liability for federal securities fraud was established as a matter of collateral estoppel by his criminal convictions for the same conduct. The District Court also awarded disgorgement and prejudgment interest, but it deemed those obligations satisfied by the restitution order in his criminal case. Georgiou appealed. We have jurisdiction pursuant to 28 U.S.C. § 1291. We ex