Dynamis Partner Eric Rosen Fights DOJ in Securities Fraud Case

In a high-stakes legal maneuver, former federal prosecutor Eric Rosen has taken over the defense of prominent short seller Andrew Left, who faces securities fraud charges stemming from a July 2024 indictment. The case, which accuses Left and his firm, Citron Research, of using misleading social media posts to manipulate stock prices for personal gain, has gained renewed attention due to Rosen's strategic approach.

Rosen, a founding partner of Dynamis LLP and best known for leading the landmark Varsity Blues college admissions prosecution, now argues that the case against Left runs counter to President Donald Trump’s stated enforcement priorities. According to Rosen, the Trump administration’s focus on investor protection—rather than criminalizing speech or routine trading practices—makes the prosecution of Left an outlier deserving reconsideration.

Rosen contends that Left engaged in no fraud or deception and victimized no one, framing his conduct as protected speech followed by lawful market activity. With this defense, Rosen is lobbying the Justice Department to dismiss the charges, similar to how the administration recently dropped other high-profile financial cases, such as those against Carlos Watson of Ozy Media and Nikola founder Trevor Milton.

Despite a federal judge previously denying Left’s motion to dismiss a parallel SEC civil case, Rosen remains persistent. He’s working to persuade officials that the charges, largely based on Left’s social media posts and internal emails, don’t align with Trump-era legal standards. The Justice Department, however, has argued that Left executed a classic fraud scheme by misleading investors while hiding his true trading intentions.

As the case heads toward a July 7 hearing, all eyes are on Rosen’s efforts to reshape the legal narrative—not only defending his client, but also testing the bounds of prosecutorial discretion under a politically charged regulatory landscape.