Anthony R. Leone

Anthony Leone is a member of the firm’s Litigation Department and is experienced in business litigation matters including securities and bankruptcy litigation. Anthony serves as vice chair of the Securities Law Practice Group and has extensive experience counseling investment advisor and broker-dealer firms and individuals with registrations, examinations, investigations, and enforcement actions.

Anthony is also the Chairman and founder of the Massachusetts Association of Investment Advisors, a trade association focused on educating, training, and advocating on behalf of Massachusetts registered investment firms and professionals.

Prior to joining Murtha Cullina, Anthony was an Assistant Director for Enforcement at the Massachusetts Securities Division of the Office of the Secretary of the Commonwealth. He represented the Securities Division as lead counsel in a number of high-profile matters. While a member of the Securities Division, Anthony also served as a member of the North American Securities Administrators Association Litigation Forum and Arbitration project groups. During law school, Anthony served as judicial intern with the Honorable Leo T. Sorokin, U.S. District Court (D. Mass.).

Representative Experience

• Representation of investment advisors, broker-dealers, fund managers, and registered and unregistered individuals in connection with regulatory investigations (including subpoena responses and testimony) and enforcement actions conducted by state securities regulators, including the Massachusetts Securities Division
• Representation of registered investment advisors and investment advisor representatives in connection with state and federal regulatory examinations and investigations, including the Securities and Exchange Commission and Massachusetts Securities Division
• Counsel investment advisors and investment advisor representatives on registration requirements and provide mock audit services as requested
• Counsel financial professionals on private offerings under federal and state blue sky laws
• Successfully defended regulatory investigation and action concerning unregistered securities offerings including allegations of unregistered sale of securities and solicitation of private placements
• Successfully obtained dismissal of all claims against limited liability company manager and related entities in breach of fiduciary duty litigation
• Successfully represented company and principal in mortgage lending litigation resulting in favorable global settlement of breach of contract and fraud allegations
• Successfully represented Chapter 7 trustees in adversary proceedings concerning fraudulent transfers, preference payments, and sales proceedings, resulting in recovery of estate assets
• Led first in the nation regulatory actions concerning non-traded real estate investment trust sales practices and broker-dealer supervision
• Oversaw proxy voting fraud investigation and regulatory action (In the Matter of Realty Capital Securities, LLC)
• Led investigation and oversaw regulatory action against multi-national, multi-billion dollar pyramid scheme and associated third-party settlement (In the Matter of TelexFREE, Inc.)

• Bankruptcy & Creditors' Rights
• Litigation
• Securities
• Bankruptcy Litigation

• Massachusetts Association of Investment Advisors, Chairman and Founder
• Boston Bar Association

• Listed in The Best Lawyers in America® as "One to Watch" (Copyright 2020 by Woodward/White, Inc., Aiken, SC)

• August 20, 2020 - 48 Murtha Cullina Attorneys Receive “Best Lawyers in America” Recognition
• January 28, 2020 - Anthony R. Leone Accepted into Greater Boston Chamber of Commerce Boston's Future Leaders Program
• April 29, 2019 - Murtha Cullina Attorney Anthony Leone Forms New Securities Trade Association

• February 25, 2021 - Securities Webinar: The New Definition of "Advertisement" Under the Marketing Rule

• January 6, 2021 - Construction Group News: Trial Court Strictly Construes Massachusetts Prompt Pay Law Against Owner
• December 22, 2020 - Securities Group News: Massachusetts Files First-Of-Its-Kind Action Concerning The Massachusetts Fiduciary Rule: Initial Considerations For Broker-Dealers and FinTech Firms
• April 21, 2020 - Securities Group News: COVID-19 Orders and Regulatory Guidance Impacting Financial Professionals in the New England Region
• April 3, 2020 - Community Banking Group News: Covid-19 Impact On Commercial Foreclosures In Massachusetts And Connecticut
• March 29, 2020 - Employee Benefits Group News: President Signs Massive $2 Trillion Stimulus Package Permitting Retirement Plan Distributions and Loan Relief to Participants Affected by COVID-19 as Well as Waivers of 2020 Required Minimum Distributions
• March 20, 2020 - Securities Group News: Investment Advisors, Is Your Business Continuity Plan Effective In The Novel Coronavirus World?
• February 25, 2020 - Securities Group News: Massachusetts Adopts First-in-the-Nation Fiduciary Duty Regulations Applicable to Broker-Dealers and Agents - Three Key Considerations
• January 8, 2020 - Securities Group News: 2020 SEC Examination Priorities To Focus On New And Never Before Examined Investment Advisors
• December 19, 2019 - Securities Group News: Massachusetts Proposes Final Fiduciary Rule - Takeaways for Financial Professionals
• October 31, 2019 - Securities Group News: One Size (Table) Fits All? Key Takeaways from the Massachusetts Securities Division's Investment Advisor Training
• March 6, 2019 - Securities Group News: Apples, Oranges, and Fees Oh My - Fidelity Faces 401(k) Lawsuit Regarding “Supermarket Fees”
• January 17, 2019 - Securities Group News: A Refresher (and update) On Data Privacy Requirements for Investment Advisors in the Commonwealth
• December 14, 2017 - Securities Group News: Bitcoin: Where Speculation (Likely) Meets Securities Regulation
• January 17, 2017 - Construction Group News: Your corporate real estate is held by a separate LLC, so it's protected, right? Maybe Not...
• September 8, 2016 - CommunityBankingInsights.com: The Massachusetts Supreme Judicial Court Lends a Helping Hand to Inadvertent Lender Omissions in the Execution of Mortgage Acknowledgements

• Massachusetts
• U.S. District Court, District of Massachusetts

• Northeastern University School of Law (J.D., 2011)
• Boston College (B.A. in Political Science, 2008)