SECURITIES

Judge Denies Access to Nasdaq Tapes: A federal judge rejected a request by the Los Angeles Times for access to about 17 hours of taped conversations that are at the heart of the Justice Department’s antitrust investigation of Nasdaq dealers. The tapes, first obtained by the Justice Department, had been turned over to investors’ lawyers in a private class-action lawsuit against 33 dealer firms. But they had been sealed by court order. In his ruling, U.S. District Judge Robert W. Sweet said release of the tapes at this early stage of the court proceeding could interfere with each side’s efforts to freely examine potential evidence. The tapes are of telephone conversations last year between Nasdaq dealers.