In SEC v. Jarkesy, the Supreme Court held that the Seventh Amendment entitles a defendant to a jury trial when the SEC seeks civil penalties for securities fraud.
The decision limits the SEC’s authority to seek civil...more
The United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit issued a major decision on May 18, 2022 holding Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC or Commission) administrative adjudications unconstitutional on multiple...more
5/31/2022
/ Adjudicatory Process ,
Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) ,
Administrative Proceedings ,
Article II ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Right to a Jury ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Fraud ,
Securities Violations ,
Seventh Amendment
Recently, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit issued its decision in SEC v. Fowler, 6 F.4th 255 (2d Cir. 2021), rejecting an argument that a federal district court lacked subject matter jurisdiction over a...more
The Enforcement Division of the Securities and Exchange Commission (Division) released its Annual Report on November 2, 2020, providing information concerning its activities over the past fiscal year and outlining key...more
11/23/2020
/ American Depository Receipts (ADRs) ,
Annual Reports ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Disgorgement ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Enforcement Statistics ,
Infectious Diseases ,
Kokesh v SEC ,
Liu v Securities and Exchange Commission ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Violations ,
Steering Committees ,
Trading Suspension ,
Whistleblowers
Especially in today’s economic and work environment, we find it helpful – and we therefore thought our clients would also find it helpful – to keep track of the important litigation and regulatory enforcement developments...more
6/11/2020
/ Asset Management ,
Class Action ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Investment ,
Proxy Materials ,
Regulation Best Interest ,
Section 36(b) ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Fraud ,
Securities Litigation
Especially in today’s economic and work environment, we find it helpful – and we therefore thought our clients would also find it helpful – to keep track of the important litigation and regulatory enforcement developments...more
5/27/2020
/ Asset Management ,
CARES Act ,
Clawbacks ,
Commercial Bankruptcy ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Exchange-Traded Products ,
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ,
Fraud ,
Fraudulent Conveyance ,
Investment Management ,
Oil & Gas ,
Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Section 36(b) ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Fraud ,
Securities Litigation ,
Shareholder Litigation
The CFTC’s Division of Enforcement (Division) released its Annual Report on November 25, 2019, summarizing the Division’s activities over the past year.1 In FY 2019, the CFTC filed 69 enforcement actions, down from 83 in FY...more
12/16/2019
/ Annual Reports ,
Bitcoin ,
CFTC ,
CFTC Enforcement Manual ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Commodities ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Customer Protection Rule ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Derivatives ,
Disgorgement ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Enforcement Statistics ,
False Reporting ,
Fraud ,
Individual Accountability ,
Integrity Policies ,
Investor Protection ,
Market Manipulation ,
Risk Management ,
Self-Reporting ,
Spoofing ,
Swaps ,
Whistleblowers
The Enforcement Division (Division) of the Securities and Exchange Commission released its Annual Report on November 6, 2019, summarizing the year’s enforcement activity. It was a record-setting year for the Division due to...more
12/3/2019
/ Annual Reports ,
Appointments Clause ,
Asset Management ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Conflicts of Interest ,
Corporate Executives ,
Cybersecurity ,
Disgorgement ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Financial Institutions ,
Initial Coin Offering (ICOs) ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Companies ,
Investor Protection ,
Kokesh v SEC ,
Lucia v SEC ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Restitution ,
SCOTUS ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Self-Reporting ,
Share Class Selection Disclosure Initiative (SCSD) ,
Statute of Limitations ,
Suspensions & Debarments ,
Whistleblowers
On November 2, 2018, the SEC Enforcement Division (“Division”) released its Annual Report summarizing the past year’s enforcement activity. In the 2018 fiscal year, the first full fiscal year that Stephanie Avakian and Steven...more
12/7/2018
/ Annual Reports ,
CEOs ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Corporate Misconduct ,
Cyber Crimes ,
Cybersecurity ,
Digital Assets ,
Digital Currency ,
Disgorgement ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Initial Coin Offering (ICOs) ,
Investor Protection ,
Personal Liability ,
Popular ,
Publicly-Traded Companies ,
Retail Investors ,
Securities ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Self-Reporting ,
Share Class Selection Disclosure Initiative (SCSD)
The U.S. Supreme Court recently held, in Lucia v. SEC,1 that Administrative Law Judges (ALJs) for the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC or Commission) are officers of the United States who must be appointed...more
6/28/2018
/ Administrative Agencies ,
Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) ,
Administrative Proceedings ,
Appeals ,
Appointments Clause ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Final Written Decisions ,
Lucia v SEC ,
Officers of the United States ,
Remand ,
Reversal ,
SCOTUS ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Violations ,
Special Trial Judges (STJs)
Stephanie Avakian and Steven Peikin, the new Co-Directors of the U.S. SEC Enforcement Division (“Division”), released a report on November 15, 2017, summarizing the Division’s enforcement activity for the fiscal year ending...more
11/29/2017
/ Anti-Retaliation Provisions ,
Asset Freeze ,
Cybersecurity ,
Disgorgement ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Excessive Fees ,
Fraud ,
Investor Protection ,
Investors ,
Penalties ,
Ponzi Scheme ,
Pump and Dump ,
Retail Market ,
Sanctions ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Whistleblowers
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit on December 27, 2016, in Bandimere v. SEC, found the Administrative Law Judges (ALJs) used by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to hear its administrative...more
1/9/2017
/ Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) ,
Administrative Proceedings ,
Appeals ,
Appointments Clause ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Due Process ,
Enforcement Actions ,
FDIC ,
Federal Bank Regulatory Agencies ,
Office of Financial Institution Adjudication (OFIA) ,
Office of Personnel Management (OPM) ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Split of Authority
A settled enforcement action announced by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) on November 3, 2015 is but one in a growing list of SEC settlements concerning the allocation and disclosure of fees and expenses by...more
A recent report by the Center for Capital Markets Competitiveness at the U.S. Chamber of Commerce (Chamber Report) regarding the enforcement program of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC or Commission) identified...more
10/26/2015
/ Administrative Law Judge (ALJ) ,
Administrative Proceedings ,
Admissions ,
Broken Windows ,
Capital Formation ,
Capital Markets ,
Chamber of Commerce ,
Competition ,
Corporate Crimes ,
Corporate Investigations ,
Depositions ,
Discovery ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Forum Selection ,
Injunctions ,
Investor Protection ,
OCIE ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Wells Notice
Two recent SEC Enforcement Division administrative settlements reinforce the importance for fund boards of directors and fund advisers to maintain a robust annual advisory contract renewal process....more
In an eagerly anticipated decision, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit vacated the 2011 decision of Judge Jed S. Rakoff of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York, rejecting a proposed...more
6/20/2014
/ Appeals ,
Chevron Deference ,
Citigroup ,
Consent Decrees ,
Enforcement ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Interlocutory Appeals ,
Judge Rakoff ,
Mary Jo White ,
Risk Management ,
SEC v Citigroup ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Vacated
Insider trading remains a top priority for the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Department of Justice (DoJ). In fiscal year 2012, the SEC filed 58 enforcement actions against 131 individuals and entities and the...more
12/26/2013
/ Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement ,
Enforcement Actions ,
GAO ,
Hedge Funds ,
Insider Trading ,
Investment Companies ,
Material Nonpublic Information ,
Personal Liability ,
Political Intelligence ,
Public Officials ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
STOCK Act ,
Stock Trades