On April 2 and 3, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC or Commission) presented its annual SEC Speaks program in conjunction with PLI, where senior members of the Commission provided updates on the current...more
In an important policy announcement aimed at rewarding robust due diligence and compliance programs, DOJ announced that acquiring companies that promptly and voluntarily disclose criminal misconduct discovered at the acquired...more
10/10/2023
/ Acquisitions ,
Antitrust Division ,
Compliance ,
Cooperation ,
Corporate Crimes ,
Corporate Misconduct ,
Deadlines ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Disgorgement ,
Due Diligence ,
Enforcement ,
Mergers ,
National Security ,
Policies and Procedures ,
Policy Statement ,
Remediation ,
Restitution ,
Safe Harbors ,
Voluntary Disclosure
The settlements announced by the SEC and CFTC on Monday are a continuation of the regulators’ focus on off-channel communications by employees of registered entities....more
8/11/2023
/ Books & Records ,
Bring Your Own Device (BYOD) ,
Broker-Dealer ,
CFTC ,
Civil Monetary Penalty ,
Commodity Exchange Act (CEA) ,
Data Preservation ,
Data Retention ,
Electronic Communications ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Hedge Funds ,
Mobile Apps ,
Private Equity ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Exchange Act ,
Settlement ,
Swap Dealers
The SEC and CFTC settlements with HSBC and Scotia Capital come after years of federal regulators’ and prosecutors’ steadily increasing scrutiny of off-channel communications. Anchoring these settlements are long-standing...more
5/24/2023
/ Amended Rules ,
Books & Records ,
CFTC ,
Compliance ,
Data Preservation ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Discovery ,
Electronic Communications ,
Employment Policies ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Instant Messaging Apps ,
Mobile Devices ,
Recordkeeping Requirements ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
In Axon Enterprise, Inc. v. FTC and SEC v. Cochran, the respondents in administrative agency enforcement actions brought suit in federal district court, challenging the constitutionality of each respective agency’s attempt to...more
On Wednesday, March 1 the Department of Justice (DOJ) announced its first-ever prosecution of an individual for insider trading based on an executive’s use of 10b5-1 trading plans. Terren Peizer, the executive chairman of...more
3/8/2023
/ 10b5-1 Plans ,
Amended Regulation ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Form 8-K ,
Indictments ,
Insider Information ,
Insider Trading ,
Popular ,
Securities ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Fraud
On Feb. 7, 2023, the Division announced its 2023 examination priorities. These priorities, updated and published annually, provide insights into the Division’s prioritization of certain practices, products and services in its...more
The Biden-Harris Administration is making the fight against global corruption a key policy objective. Through its new United States Strategy on Countering Corruption, released on December 6, 2021, the Biden-Harris...more
On June 21, 2021, in NCAA v. Alston, the U.S. Supreme Court unanimously held that the National Collegiate Athletic Association’s (NCAA) rules limiting education-related compensation that colleges and universities can provide...more
On May 15, 2020, BakerHostetler published an alert warning that the COVID-19 crisis would undoubtedly lead to a new wave of whistleblower complaints. The alert explained that “[a]s the pandemic continues, … companies may seek...more
As the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) continues to fight legal battles to limit the ability of student-athlete plaintiffs to bring antitrust suits challenging NCAA compensation rules, it is fighting to keep...more
On April 16, 2020, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) announced a $27 million whistleblower award, its largest award of 2020 and the sixth-highest whistleblower award since the inception of its whistleblower...more
On March 16, 2020, Attorney General William Barr directed all U.S. Attorney’s Offices to prioritize the detection, investigation, and prosecution of all criminal conduct related to the COVID-19 pandemic. The Department of...more
The Coronavirus Aid, Relief and Economic Security Act (the “CARES Act” or the “Act”) provides over $2 trillion in economic relief to eligible businesses and individuals affected by the COVID-19 pandemic. As with prior...more
With more than 130 highly trained enforcement accountants at his disposal, Matthew Jacques, the Chief Accountant of the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”), provided a firsthand glimpse into current enforcement...more
2017 marked the fortieth anniversary of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), and showed continued robust enforcement against both individuals and companies by the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and the U.S. Securities...more
3/9/2018
/ Anti-Bribery ,
Anti-Corruption ,
Bribery ,
Compliance ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Corruption ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Federal Pilot Programs ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Foreign Official ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
White Collar Crimes
A year after a global anti-bribery standard was implemented by the International Standards Organization (“ISO”), a slow trend is emerging among major corporations, such as Microsoft and Wal-Mart, announcing they will seek...more
The first half of 2017 has been eagerly anticipated following the record-setting year in 2016 for Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (“FCPA”) enforcement by both the U.S. Department of Justice (“DOJ”) and the U.S. Securities and...more
8/29/2017
/ Bribery ,
Compliance ,
Corruption ,
Deferred Prosecution Agreements ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Government Officials ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Trump Administration ,
White Collar Crimes
The Supreme Court held unanimously last week in Kokesh v. Securities and Exchange Commission, No. 16—529 (2017), that the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC’s) often used disgorgement remedy was a penalty subject to...more
2016 was a record-setting year for Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (“FCPA”) enforcement, as both the U.S. Department of Justice (“DOJ”) and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) recovered well over $2 billion in...more
1/26/2017
/ Anti-Bribery ,
Anti-Corruption ,
Bribery ,
Corporate Counsel ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Fraud ,
Money Laundering ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
White Collar Crimes
Both the United States Department of Justice (DOJ) and the United States Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) have continued their focus on anticorruption enforcement in 2015. Although there was a decline in enforcement...more
4/20/2016
/ Corporate Fraud ,
Corruption ,
Criminal Prosecution ,
Deferred Prosecution Agreements ,
Department of Justice (DOJ) ,
Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) ,
Government Investigations ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Self-Reporting ,
Settlement ,
White Collar Crimes ,
Yates Memorandum