DALLAS (Bloomberg) — The US Securities and Exchange Commission told a federal court in Texas it is appealing the dismissal of its lawsuit accusing Mark Cuban, the billionaire owner of the Dallas Mavericks, of insider trading.

The regulator filed a notice of appeal at US District Court in Dallas yesterday. A judge at that court in July granted Cuban's request to dismiss the agency's lawsuit, saying the SEC's lawsuit didn't adequately show that Cuban should have been barred from making the trades. The agency claims Cuban promised during a 2004 telephone call with Mamma.com Inc.'s chief executive officer to keep confidential a planned private offering of company stock at a below-market price.

Later that day, Cuban allegedly avoided more than $750,000 in losses by ordering the sale of his 6.3 percent stake in the Montreal-based Internet search company.