SECURITIES & EXCH. COM'N v. Micro-Moisture Controls

• Decision Date: 24 January 1957
• Parties: SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION, Plaintiff, v. MICRO-MOISTURE CONTROLS, Inc., et al., Defendants.
• Court: U.S. District Court — Southern District of New York

148 F. Supp. 558

SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION, Plaintiff, v. MICRO-MOISTURE CONTROLS, Inc., et al., Defendants.

United States District Court S. D. New York.

January 24, 1957.

Edward O. B. Reid, New York City, for plaintiff.

Edmond C. Blumner, Spencer Pinkham, John H. Kelley, Sidney B. Josephson, Lichtig, Copland & Greenfield, New York City, for defendants.

RYAN, District Judge.

Securities and Exchange Commission as plaintiff has moved in this suit for a preliminary injunction under Rule 65, Fed.Rules Civ.Proc. 28 U.S.C.A. pending trial and final determination restraining the defendants and each of them from directly or indirectly offering to sell and selling shares of the common stock of the defendant Micro-Moisture Controls, Inc., which is not exempt from the provisions of Section 5 of the Securities Act of 1933, 15 U.S.C.A. § 77e, or from employing the mails or means of interstate commerce for the purpose of sale or delivery after sale of this non-exempt common stock unless and until a registration statement is in effect or has been filed with the Commission as to this non-exempt stock.

The motion was brought on for hearing by order to show cause which contained a restraining order enjoining the defendants until after the hearing and decision on this motion from doing the acts which the Commission seeks by this motion to enjoin by preliminary injunction pendente lite. An application by the defendants to vacate the restraining order as to some, if not all of the defendants, was denied after hearing. However, a further order was issued continuing the provisions of the original restraining order but clarifying that order so as to specifically exempt the brokers and dealers named as defendants from dealing or trading in common stock of Micro-Moisture Controls, Inc. which had not been owned by the issuer or a person under direct or indirect control of or by the issuer or an underwriter within the meaning of Sec. 2(11) of the Securities Act of 1933, 15 U.S.C.A. § 77b(11).

I make the following findings of fact on the evidence submitted on this motion.

Micro-Moisture Controls was incorporated on January 16, 1953 under the laws of Delaware. At present, it has its executive offices and place of business in Mineola, N. Y. and two subsidiary establishments in Canada. Initial authorized capital was 2,000,000 shares of common stock with a par value of one cent; of this, 450,000 shares were issued to the organizers in payment of patent application rights and other considerations providing for assuring the corporation the exclusive use of "Weather Guards" — a moisture sensitive relay system. Subsequently, the authorized capitalization was increased to 7,000,000 shares of common stock; 5,512,983 shares are outstanding.

One Alexander L. Guterma was one of the principal organizers of Micro-Moisture.

On March 27, 1953 the corporation filed a letter of notification under Regulation A of the Rules and Regulations of the Securities Act for a proposed public offering of 299,000 shares at an offering price of $1 per share. It is to be noted that the filing and the offering circular disclose — (1) that the defendant McGrath Securities Corporation was the underwriter of the offering; (2) that Alexander Guterma was then Chairman of the Board of Directors of the issuer; (3) that he was also the owner of the majority of the capital stock of McGrath; and (4) that the defendant Robert G. Leonhardt was president of the underwriter. The issuer on March 29, 1954 advised the Commission that all of this stock had been sold to the public. Later in February, 1954 Micro-Moisture issued 33,000 shares of its common stock to the stockholders of All Weather Window Corporation of Florida in payment for the transfer of its business and assets. There was no registration or qualification by the defendant corporation of this stock, exemption being claimed under the second clause of Section 4(1), 15 U.S.C.A. § 77d(1). Again on May 27, 1954 Micro-Moisture issued 318,007 shares of its common stock to Eastern Koolvent Aluminum Awning, Inc. of Mineola in consideration for the transfer of its assets. Again, there was no registration or qualification of this stock, exemption being claimed under Rule 133 of the Regulations of the Act.

Shortly before this last transaction — (1) Guterma resigned as a Director of Micro-Moisture; (2) sold 160,000 shares of his then retained total of 227,000 shares of promotional common stock to the defendant Garland L. Culpepper, Jr., (3) Culpepper was elected President and Director of the defendant corporation and (4) received from Guterma a voting power over Guterma's remaining 67,000 shares irrevocable until June 30, 1956. At that time, the defendant Leonhardt gave Culpepper a like proxy over 60,000 shares which he owned. Thereafter Guterma and Leonhardt sold to the public without registration or notification to the Commission this total of 127,000 shares subject to the voting proxies which had been given Culpepper. In August, 1954, Micro-Moisture issued for investment 10,000 shares as compensation to one Jack Carmel, then a vice-president and director; in October, 1954, it issued 195,643 shares to eight stockholders of a corporation called Comfort Zone Corporation in exchange for 82% of this corporation's outstanding stock; and again on November 30, 1954 it issued 430,000 shares to 14 stockholders of Koolvent Awning, Ltd. of Canada, in exchange for all the capital stock of that corporation. It is to be noted also that all of these last three issues were without prior approval of the stockholders of Micro-Moisture and that none were registered or qualified under the Securities Act of 1933, exemption being claimed as a private transaction under Section 4(1) of the Act.

It is further of record that on January 13, 1955 Micro-Moisture filed with the Commission a notification (on Form 1-A) under Regulation A covering a public offering of $250,000 of 6 5/8 cumulative income convertible debentures. By October 27, 1955, $218,400...