On March 3, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission announced its examination priorities for 2021, providing a much-anticipated glimpse into the Biden administration's overall priorities for white collar criminal...more
3/15/2021
/ Anti-Money Laundering ,
Biden Administration ,
Capital Markets ,
Chief Compliance Officers ,
Climate Change ,
Compliance ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Data Security ,
Digital Assets ,
Disaster Preparedness ,
Environmental Social & Governance (ESG) ,
Fraud Prevention ,
Libor ,
Liquidity ,
Military Service Members ,
Operational Requirements ,
Private Funds ,
Registered Investment Advisors ,
Remote Working ,
Retail Investors ,
Retirement ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Standard of Conduct ,
Teachers ,
Technology Sector ,
Turnkey Contracts ,
White Collar Crimes
Often–at least in the legal field–a good-faith mistake can be reversed. A privileged document is inadvertently produced in discovery; it can be clawed back. An email to the team is accidentally sent to opposing counsel;...more
The Anti-Money Laundering Act of 2020 took effect on Jan. 1 and is the most significant anti-money laundering statute since the USA Patriot Act was passed after the terrorist attacks of 9/11. Its primary purpose was to update...more
On Jan. 1, 2021, the U.S. Congress passed amendments to the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 (Exchange Act) that significantly expand the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) authority to recover disgorgement of any...more
With a new year and the introduction of multiple vaccines, there is much hope that the end of the COVID-19 pandemic is in sight. Nevertheless, the pandemic will have wide-ranging consequences far beyond its end date...more
On December 4, 2020, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced a settlement with the Cheesecake Factory Inc. asserting that the company issued materially misleading disclosures about the risk that the COVID-19...more
On November 2, the Securities and Exchange Commission’s Division of Enforcement (the Division) published its 2020 Annual Report (the Report), which details the Division’s fiscal year (FY) ending September 30, 2020,...more
11/10/2020
/ Broker-Dealer ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Disgorgement ,
Enforcement ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Financial Fraud ,
Investment Adviser ,
OCIE ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Whistleblower Awards ,
Whistleblowers
On August 31, 2020, the White House issued a memo (the Memo) directing federal agencies to, among other things, “consider the principles of fairness in administrative enforcement and adjudication.”1 The Memo, issued by the...more
In a long-anticipated decision, the U.S. Supreme Court this week upheld the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) ability to obtain disgorgement, provided the award does not exceed the wrongdoer’s ill-gotten gains and is...more
6/23/2020
/ 15 U.S.C. § 78u(d)(5) ,
Administrative Authority ,
Business Expenses ,
Calculation of Damages ,
Corporate Misconduct ,
Disgorgement ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Equitable Relief ,
Kokesh v SEC ,
Lack of Authority ,
Liu v Securities and Exchange Commission ,
Net Profits ,
Remedies ,
SCOTUS ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
In the weeks and months since COVID-19 effectively brought many sectors of the U.S. economy to a screeching halt, numerous major retailers, recreation and travel companies, grocery chains and restaurants have filed for...more
As the country begins on the path toward reopening in the current economic climate, white collar defense practitioners will need to become experts in an unfamiliar area of the law: bankruptcy.
Because there will be an...more
Just one day after lending under the Paycheck Protection Program reopened, Treasury Secretary Steve Mnuchin warned that the Small Business Administration would audit all loans over $2 million. The announcement follows...more
The Small Business Administration’s (SBA) Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) is a forgivable loan program created by the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. The purpose of the PPP, which has a $349...more
4/27/2020
/ Borrowers ,
CARES Act ,
Coronavirus/COVID-19 ,
Criminal Penalties ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Due Diligence ,
Federal Crimes ,
Loan Forgiveness ,
Paycheck Protection Program (PPP) ,
SBA ,
Small Business
A bankruptcy trust for creditors (including former workers and trade vendors) who lost significant sums of money in the Toys “R” Us Inc. (TRU) bankruptcy sued former Chief Executive Officer David Brandon, several other...more
Companies who do business in the United States and have documents located abroad must understand the potential conflicts between the broad extraterritorial discovery authorized by U.S. courts, and the major restrictions on...more