Jim Cramer draws fire

Hedge fund lawyer Ron Geffner of Sadis & Goldberg called the interview a "somewhat surprising confession to make publicly, which definitely invites suspicion by regulators."

"Whether he violated the law is unclear," added Geffner. "That is dependent on his trading records. But it's clear that he seems to be challenging regulators to come and examine him."

A spokesman for the SEC declined to comment on whether the agency is looking at Cramer's comments. A decade ago Cramer faced an SEC investigation over a column he wrote for SmartMoney magazine that touted four stocks without disclosing his holdings in them. He was eventually cleared of wrongdoing, according to news reports.

Other legal experts criticized Cramer's comments for suggesting that stock manipulation is widespread among the growing legions of hedge funds, which are investment vehicles that typically trade much more actively and use more complex strategies than mutual funds.

"This makes it sound like everyone is doing it and the reality is that most hedge funds are not engaged in this kind of manipulative behavior," said Laurel Fitzpatrick, a hedge fund lawyer with Ropes & Gray.

News of the interview was reported in the New York Post on Tuesday. Cramer could not be reached for comment following calls to both TheStreet.com and CNBC. Spokespeople for CNBC and TheStreet.com were unavailable for comment.

Cramer said in the interview that he would not make such comments on his CNBC show.

Cramer, who regularly gives opinions on stocks on his daily TV show, also said stock market movements are often unconnected to the fundamental qualities of the underlying company.

"Who cares about the fundamentals?" said Cramer. "The great thing about the market is that it has nothing to do with the actual stocks."

The writer of this article previously worked for TheStreet.com.

((Editing by Toni Reinhold; Reuters messaging: dane.hamilton.reuters.com@reuters.net. 646 223-6161)) Keywords: CRAMER INTERVIEW/

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