What David Sokol did was "front-running, and everybody knows that it is wrong," Alice Schroder writes. "When Sokol pitched the deal to Buffett (BRK.A), he was holding stock in Lubrizol (LZ) that had the equivalent of free lottery tickets attached... Instead of condemning Sokol, Buffett gave him a pat on the back on the way out... It’s too bad that Buffett missed an opportunity to show moral courage." [View news story]
In a country with free speech, individual rights, property rights and a limited government whose sole purpose was to protect our rights, the so called "insider trading" laws would not exist. In this case, the only legitimate issue would be the contractual relationship between Sokol and Buffet. Whatever their contract said about trading in potential deal stocks would govern the situation.
What David Sokol did was "front-running, and everybody knows that it is wrong," Alice Schroder writes. "When Sokol pitched the deal to Buffett (BRK.A), he was holding stock in Lubrizol (LZ) that had the equivalent of free lottery tickets attached... Instead of condemning Sokol, Buffett gave him a pat on the back on the way out... It’s too bad that Buffett missed an opportunity to show moral courage." [View news story]
Mike Murdoch