Leonard, Street and Deinard - Dodd-Frank and the Jobs Act

Broadly speaking, SEC Regulation BTR prohibits directors and executive officers of public companies from trading in the issuer’s securities which were acquired in connection with service to the issuer if a sufficient number of…more

On May 18, 2013, SEC Commissioner Luis A. Aguilar spoke at the annual gala of the Georgia Hispanic Chamber of Commerce, using the opportunity to highlight the contributions of immigrants (and Hispanic immigrants in particular)…more

We previously noted that the challenge to the SEC’s conflict minerals rules was transferred from the Court of Appeals to the United States District Court for the District of Columbia…more

Two partners from a self-described law firm that specializes in the representation of whistleblowers have sent a letter to the SEC Commissioners complaining about the use of severance agreements to prevent employees from…more

This week the SEC appointed Keith F. Higgins as Director of the Division of Corporation Finance. We don’t know him personally but have seen him speak at conferences and observed his leadership of the ABA’s Federal Regulation of…more

In testimony before the U.S. House of Representatives Committee on Financial Services, SEC Chair Mary Jo White stated that the Netflix Section 21(a) report stands for the proposition that use of social media is acceptable “so…more

At its open meeting on May 16, 2013, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission will vote on the final interpretative rule for disruptive trading practices under Section 747 of the Dodd-Frank Act. That order should be of interest…more

It was another week of speculation as to when the SEC might finalize or propose any JOBS Act rule. Broc Romanek of the TheCorporateCounsel.net pointed to one article which said the current JOBS Act proposal on eliminating…more

The Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, or PCAOB, has reproposed a new auditing standard, Related Parties, and certain other amendments to its standards. Overall, the reproposal is directed at detecting material…more

A new study sponsored by the American Enterprise Institute on the impact of Dodd-Frank on community banks has been published. The study notes..…more

The SEC instituted a settled cease-and-desist proceeding against the City of Harrisburg, Pennsylvania for its violations of Section 10(b) of the Securities Exchange Act (“Exchange Act”) and Rule 10b-5…more

Mary Jo White, now chair of the SEC, submitted a written statement in her confirmation hearing that said “First, I would work with the staff and my fellow Commissioners to finish, in as timely and smart a way as possible, the…more

As most listed public companies know, as a result of the Dodd-Frank Act, the stock exchanges have adopted rules regarding the independence of compensation committees and their advisers. NASDAQ and the NYSE require the first…more

On Monday, April 29, the Commodity Futures Trading Commission reiterated that wash trades (transactions without intent to take genuine, bona fide positions in the market, such as simultaneous purchases and sales designed to…more

As previously noted, the Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia recently dismissed a challenge to the SEC’s resource extraction rules for lack of jurisdiction. The case was left to proceed pursuant to a previously filed…more