PODCAST: Williams Mullen's Raising Capital 101: A Securities Podcast - What Makes it a Securities Offering?
All Things Investigations: Anchored in Fraud: Mike DeBernardis and Shayda Vance on Austal USA’s Scandal
The Legal Tightrope: Surviving Parallel Investigations
Navigating Government Contracts: Diana Shaw on Oversight and Whistleblower Protections
From Court to Code: Smart Contracts and Arbitration
Episode 335 -- The New DOJ Whistleblower Program
Navigating Emerging Privacy Issues in Financial Services — The Consumer Finance Podcast
Implications of the SEC Cybersecurity Disclosure Rule
Corruption, Crime and Compliance: SEC Suffers Dismissal of Claims in Solarwinds Securities Fraud Case
Episode 334 -- District Court Dismisses Bulk of SEC Claims Against Solarwinds
The Woody Report: The Solar Winds Dismissal
In That Case: Securities and Exchange Commission v. Jarkesy
Corruption, Crime and Compliance: Deep Dive into The SEC’s Settlement with R&R Donnelly on Cybersecurity Controls
Episode 332 -- Deep Dive into SEC’s Internal Controls and Cybersecurity Settlement with R&R Donnelly
The Justice Insiders Podcast: Jarkesy’s Implications for the Administrative State
DE Under 3: OFCCP Must Shut Down its Administrative Court Prosecutions as a Result of SCOTUS’ SEC Jury Trial Case Decision
Dogecoin’s Day in Court
Unpacking the Lummis-Gillibrand Payment Stablecoin Act: Implications for the Digital Asset Industry — The Crypto Exchange Podcast
Podcast: Is Cryptocurrency a Security (like an orange grove)?
Navigating the Regulatory Waters: The SEC's Wells Notice to Uniswap and its Impact on DeFi — The Crypto Exchange Podcast
On September 9, 2024, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced settlements with seven public companies for using employment, separation, and other agreements that violated rules prohibiting actions to impede...more
Last week, the SEC announced settled charges against seven public companies for use of agreements that the SEC alleges have provisions that violate the whistleblower protection rule. Coincidentally, I recently recorded a...more
Employers should check their confidentiality and severance agreements for a common oversight that, for some, is becoming a costly error. Recent enforcement activity by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) of Rule...more
While jingle bells have only just begun to ring, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) enforcement bells have been ringing steadily throughout year. In recent months, the SEC announced significant settlements with...more
Both public and private companies should review their confidentiality policies and written agreements in light of recent guidance and enforcement actions by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). On September 29, 2023,...more
In September, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) announced the settlement of three enforcement actions for violations of SEC whistleblower protection laws. In the actions, the SEC asserted that the...more
We have often written about the SEC’s whistleblower program and, in particular, the success of the program with respect to detecting and preventing violations of the federal securities laws. The success of the program...more
On Friday, September 29, 2023, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) issued a cease and desist and $10 million civil money penalty against D.E. Shaw & Co, L.P. (“DESCO”). DESCO is a registered investment advisor...more
by Mark Wiletsky Mark Wiletsky Companies routinely use separation agreements with departing employees. Through those agreements, the employee receives some type of separation benefit (typically a payment or severance), and...more
Public companies should be mindful not to interfere with or retaliate against whistleblowers, and stretching is best reserved for the yoga mat, not the numbers in a company's public disclosures. So says the U.S. Securities...more
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) recently awarded $3 million to joint whistleblowers despite concluding that the whistleblowers did not satisfy the technical eligibility requirements for receiving an award. See...more
The SEC recently slapped two companies with sizeable fines for allegedly impeding potential whistleblowers from communicating with the agency in violation of Rule 21F-17. These fines, coupled with the SEC’s recent enforcement...more
A federal court recently ruled that an employee may use his employer’s confidential information in a whistleblower retaliation complaint, regardless of whether an employment confidentiality agreement prohibited him from doing...more
In the past two years, the SEC has charged six public companies with violating SEC Rule 21F-17, which prohibits confidentiality agreements that could impede employees from making whistleblower claims directly to the SEC....more
The Cost Of Keeping Things Quiet: Crackdown On Confidentiality Clauses Calls For Explicit Carve-Outs - In last February’s Employment Law Commentary, we discussed best practices for drafting separation agreements. Among...more
Takeaways: - SEC is targeting contract terms that appear to restrict contact with the SEC or require employee whistleblowers to waive monetary recoveries. - Express disclosure of these rights in severance...more
Two recent SEC enforcement actions that describe how severance agreements may violate whistleblower protections under the federal securities laws if not properly drafted were the subject of a recent article by Perkins Coie...more
As reported by Ryan Barber of the National Law Journal, the Trump administration could change the trajectory of the SEC whistleblower office, potentially halting the SEC’s recent strict scrutiny of potential impediments for...more
On October 24, 2016, the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)'s Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations (OCIE) released an alert examining whistleblower rule compliance and the use of...more
On October 24, 2016, OCIE published a risk alert noting that the SEC exam staff intends to examine registrants' compliance with the Dodd-Frank Act's whistleblower provisions. The alert noted recent enforcement actions...more
We are thrilled to bring you the third installment of Stinson Leonard Street's Emerging Trends newsletter. We are proud of the depth and breadth of experience and knowledge across our firm's 13 offices nationwide and are...more
The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) continues to pursue enforcement actions against companies for whistleblower-related violations. The latest in a recent string of settled orders, which include the SEC's first case...more
SEC Brings First Stand-Alone Whistleblower Retaliation Enforcement Action - On September 29, 2016, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) brought its first stand-alone whistleblower retaliation case under...more
Please join us for an informative live webinar series that will provide a practical overview of employment and severance agreements around the globe. On October 19th, our panel of speakers will discuss the various federal and...more
As we discussed in our June 2011 Bulletin, available here, SEC rules promulgated under the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, as amended (Exchange Act), pursuant to Section 21F thereunder as enacted by the Dodd-Frank Wall...more