Page 1 

Commodity Futures Trading Commission 

CEA CASES 

NAME: VINCENT W. ROONEY 

DOCKET NUMBER: 75 

DATE: JANUARY 4, 1957 

DOCUMENT TYPE: COMPLAINT 

UNITED STATES DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE 

BEFORE THE SECRETARY OF AGRICULTURE 

In re: Vincent W. Rooney, Respondent 

CEA Docket No. 75 

Complaint and Notice of Hearing under section 6(b) of the Commodity Exchange 

Act 

There is reason to believe that the respondent, Vincent W. Rooney, has 

violated the provisions of the Commodity Exchange Act (7 U.S.C., Chapter 1), and 

the rules and regulations of the Secretary of Agriculture made pursuant thereto 

(17 CFR, Part 1). In accordance with the provisions of section 6(b) of the 

Commodity Exchange Act (7 U.S.C. 9), this complaint and notice of hearing is 

issued alleging as follows: 

I 

Respondent Vincent W. Rooney, an individual whose address is 327 South 

LaSalle Street, Room 801, Chicago 4, Illinois, is now and has been at all times 

material to this complaint a clearing member of the Board of Trade of the City 

of Chicago and a registered floor broker under the Commodity Exchange Act. 

II 

The Board of Trade of the City of Chicago, hereinafter called the Chicago 

Board of Trade, is now and has been at all times material to this complaint a 

duly designated contract market under the Commodity Exchange Act. 

III 

On or prior to August 27, 1956, respondent Vincent W. Rooney received orders 

from Bache & Co., Sincere and Company, and Francis I.duPont & Co., registered 

futures commission merchants, to sell on the Chicago Board of Trade for their 

respective accounts 31 contracts, in the aggregate, of September 1956 lard 

futures, each contract consisting of approximately 40,000 pounds. Thereafter, 

on or about August 27, 1956, at a time when the price of September 1956 lard 

futures was 10.75 - 10.70 cents per pound, the respondent entered into direct 

and private negotiations with one Joseph A. McDonough, a registered floor 

broker, and instructed the said Joseph A. McDonough to enter on his trading 

records sales of the said 31 contracts for the said futures commission merchants 

at prices of 10.50 and 10.55 cents per pound, thus purporting to show that the 

said Joseph A. McDonough was the selling broker on such transactions. The said 

Joseph A. McDonough thereupon recorded the transactions as instructed by the 

said respondent and the said respondent took the buying side of the said 

transactions, recorded the purchase of 26 of the said contracts for his personal 

account without the prior consent of the above named futures commission 

merchants, recorded the purchase of the remaining five contracts for the 

accounts of customers, and caused the prices of 10.50 and 10.55 to be registered 

as official price quotations of the Chicago Board of Trade. 
Page 2 

IV 

The transactions in September 1956 lard futures described in paragraph III 

were capable of being used for hedging transactions in interstate commerce in 

lard or the products or by-products thereof, or determining the price basis of 

transactions in interstate commerce in lard, or delivering lard sold, shipped, 

or received in interstate commerce. 

V 

By reason of the acts described in paragraph III, respondent Vincent W. 

Rooney wilfully and knowingly and without the prior consent of his principals 

became the buyer with respect to selling orders of such principals, and filled 

orders by offset, in wilful violation of section 4b(D) of the Commodity Exchange 

Act (7 U.S.C. 6b(D)); caused prices to be recorded which were not true and bona 

fide prices, in wilful violation of section 4c(C) of the Commodity Exchange Act 

(7 U.S.C. 6c(C)); and failed to execute futures trades openly and competitively 

by open outcry or by other equally open and competitive methods in the trading 

pit or ring of the Chicago Board of Trade, in wilful violation of section 1.38 

of the rules and regulations under the Commodity Exchange Act (17 CFR 1.38). 

Therefore, the said respondent, Vincent W. Rooney, is hereby notified to 

appear and be at a hearing to be held at 10:00 a.m. local time, 

on the 5th day of February, 1957, in Room 1200, Board of Trade Building, 141 

West Jackson Boulevard, Chicago, Illinois, before a referee designated to 

conduct such hearing, and then and there show cause, if any there be, why an 

order should not be made suspending or revoking the registration of respondent 

Vincent W. Rooney as a floor broker and directing that all contract markets 

refuse all trading privileges to the said respondent for such period of time as 

may be determined. The respondent will have twenty (20) days after the receipt 

of this notice of hearing in which to file with the Hearing Clerk, United States 

Department of Agriculture, Washington 25, D. C., an answer, in quadruplicate, 

fully and completely stating the nature of the defense and admitting or denying, 

specifically and in detail, each material and relevant allegation of this 

complaint. Allegations that are not answered will be deemed admitted for the 

purpose of this proceeding. 

It is ordered that this complaint and notice of hearing be served on the 

respondent by delivery of a true copy thereof by an employee of the Department 

of Agriculture, or by registered mail, at least twenty (20) days prior to the 

date set for hearing. 

Done at Washington, D. C., this 

4 day of January, 1957. 

/s/ Earl L. Butz 

Earl L. Butz 

Acting Secretary 

LOAD-DATE: June 12, 2008 
Page 3