what is the difference between martha stewart and Raymond dirks cases of insider trading?

Answer 1

They got Martha Stewart for lying to a federal investigator.

In 1983, Dirks, a securities analyst, was given inside information from a former employee of Equity Funding Corp. Dirks reported this info to the press and to the SEC, but they didn't believe him. He then advised his clients to sell their holdings in Equity. The SEC charged him with insider trading, but he was acquitted because he was not motivated by personal gain.

Stewart might have beat the insider trading rap, but now the rules are different for dealings with federal investigators. So the two situations, legally, are not in any way related.