Raj Rajaratnam and Rajat Gupta Seeking to Overturn Penalties Against Them

Galleon Group hedge fund founder Raj Rajaratnam and former Goldman Sachs Group Inc director Rajat Gupta are seeking to overturn penalties imposed against them for insider trading, citing a recent U.S. court decision that narrowed the definition of that offence.

Rajaratnam, who is serving an 11-year prison term, is trying to void a $92.8 million penalty in a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission caivil case, while Gupta wants to throw out his criminal conviction, which led to a two-year prison term, according to court filings late last week. The men are the highest-profile defendants convicted in a U.S. insider trading crackdown, focused mainly on hedge funds, unveiled in 2009.

Rajaratnam, 57, was convicted of fraud and conspiracy over a variety of trades that prosecutors said generated $63.8 million of illegal profit. Gupta, 66, who is also a former McKinsey & Co global managing director, was convicted of passing tips to Rajaratnam about Goldman’s financial results and an investment from Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Inc