The Globe and Mail reports in its Friday edition a federal judge has accepted SAC Capital Advisors LP's criminal settlement with the U.S. Justice Department, wrapping up a decade-long insider trading investigation into the hedge fund founded by Steven Cohen. A Dow Jones dispatch to The Globe says that after years of denials, SAC agreed to plead guilty to insider trading in November and to pay a $1.8-billion penalty (all figures U.S.). Over the past two decades, SAC became one of the most successful hedge funds in the world, earning billions of dollars in profits for Mr. Cohen and his investors. At a hearing on Thursday, U.S. District Justice Laura Taylor Swain gave quick approval to the firm's guilty plea. However, she took her time in weighing whether to approve the $900-million criminal-penalty portion. During the hearing, Justice Swain peppered lawyers for both the government and SAC with questions over the size of the fine and other requirements in the settlement. The criminal penalty includes a $900-million civil forfeiture reduced to $284-million because of funds SAC had already paid to the Securities and Exchange Commission. Another judge approved the civil portion in November.