Patent ID: 7016874

Claim:
A system for handling securities trading plans, comprising: a storage mechanism maintained by an organizational entity, the storage mechanism storing a securities trading plan template that is to be accessed by a person associated with the organizational entity to generate a completed securities trading plan identifying conditions under which a securities-related transaction is to occur; and a processor executing a plan verifier program that is accessible via a computer under the control of the organizational entity and that receives the completed securities trading plan and records the completed securities trading plan in the storage mechanism, the storage mechanism providing secure storage of the securities trading plan to ensure that the recorded securities trading plan provides proof of a time of adoption of the securities trading plan and definitive terms of the securities trading plan for use as a defense in a securities-related legal proceeding involving the person associated with the corporate entity; wherein the securities trading plan is completed by the person associated with the organizational entity at a time when the person is not aware of material, non-public information relating to the organizational entity in order to minimize exposure to liability under federal securities laws in the event that the person becomes aware of such material, non-public information after the completed securities trading plan has been recorded by the plan verifier; wherein the plan verifier program and the control provided by the organizational entity enable the securities trading plan to be recorded without requiring assistance of an attorney or a broker.