Economic headwinds and the interest rate environment that developed over the course of 2023 increased financial stress on portfolio companies and portend heightened litigation risk in 2024 for portfolio companies and their...more
To understand the litigation and regulatory risks that are coming in 2024 for private capital, it is helpful to look back briefly on recent events. Arguably, the single most important event over the last 18 months was the...more
3/19/2024
/ Acquisitions ,
Asset Management ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Cybersecurity ,
Dispute Resolution ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Fund Managers ,
Hedge Funds ,
Interest Rates ,
Investment Management ,
Investors ,
Mergers ,
Private Equity ,
Private Funds ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation ,
Technology Sector
The SEC last month proposed rules under the Advisers Act indicating a dramatic shift in how the SEC intends to reduce conflicts of interest involving private fund managers and their investors. As we previously noted in the...more
5/3/2022
/ Anti-Fraud Provisions ,
Clawbacks ,
Conflicts of Interest ,
Fund Managers ,
Investment ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Advisers Act of 1940 ,
Investment Management ,
Investors ,
Private Funds ,
Proposed Rules ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Reform ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation
Last month, the SEC proposed new rules under the Advisers Act that, if implemented, would be the most significant enhancement of disclosure obligations for private fund managers since the Dodd-Frank Act.Citing investor...more
Over the last few years, we have seen an uptick in litigation claims against sponsors and funds arising out of their interests in portfolio companies. A fund sponsor’s participation on a portfolio company board, in...more
We at The Capital Commitment blog have previously discussed several steps for fund managers and others to weather the storm brought by COVID-19. One of those steps is assessing the likelihood of a carried interest return...more
An increasingly sophisticated and active OCIE division, innovative market disruptors, a maturing credit cycle, and a philosophical change in how the private fund industry views and utilizes litigation are likely to lead to...more
2/21/2019
/ Cryptocurrency ,
Cybersecurity ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Fund Managers ,
Initial Coin Offering (ICOs) ,
Investment Adviser ,
Litigation Funding ,
OCIE ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Exchange Act ,
Token Sales
For private fund managers, the valuation of privately-held securities has been subject to heightened regulatory scrutiny. As the IPO on-ramp for private “unicorn” investments has lengthened, fund managers may hold illiquid...more
6/21/2017
/ Fund Managers ,
Initial Public Offering (IPO) ,
IRS ,
Portfolio Managers ,
Private Equity ,
Private Funds ,
Privately Held Corporations ,
Section 409A ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Unicorns ,
Valuation
As we have previously observed, private fund advisers face a difficult challenge when SEC guidance (in the form of a speech or a public enforcement order) indicates that certain long-standing practices may be contrary to the...more
6/28/2016
/ Anti-Retaliation Provisions ,
Dodd-Frank ,
Fund Managers ,
Internal Investigations ,
Internal Reporting ,
Investment Adviser ,
Private Funds ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Violations ,
Whistleblower Awards ,
Whistleblowers
The SEC is continuing its pattern of establishing “standards of conduct” for the private equity industry through speeches, enforcement actions, and public settlements. After foreshadowing its concerns in various speeches over...more
On June 1, 2016, the SEC announced a settlement with Blackstreet Capital Management, LLC and Murry N. Gunty, Blackstreet's managing member and principal owner. As a registered investment adviser based in Chevy Chase,...more
Individuals affiliated with private fund managers are increasingly being named as defendants in lawsuits involving fund portfolio companies, particularly where the fund controls one or more seats on the portfolio company’s...more
The SEC’s regulation of the private investment funds industry has generated significant attention and commentary, as well as a fair amount of hand-wringing. From our perspective as lawyers, however, there is a relatively...more
5/9/2016
/ Breach of Duty ,
Conflicts of Interest ,
Duty to Disclose ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Fund Managers ,
Limited Partnership Agreements ,
Offering Documents ,
Private Equity ,
Private Investment Funds ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC)
Regulators were busy at the end of 2015, especially in the United States, perhaps being motivated to push forward new rule proposals in anticipation of a change in administration after the presidential elections later this...more
On November 5, 2015, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) announced that it had reached a settlement with Cherokee Investment Partners, LLC (CIP) and Cherokee Advisers, LLC (CA), affiliated private equity fund...more
On July 22, 2015, the U.S. Department of the Treasury and U.S. Internal Revenue Service issued proposed Treasury Regulations under Section 707(a)(2)(A) of the Internal Revenue Code of 1986, as amended, addressing management...more
7/27/2015
/ Capital Gains ,
Deferred Compensation ,
Enterprise Risks ,
Fee Waivers ,
Fund Managers ,
Income Taxes ,
Internal Revenue Code (IRC) ,
IRS ,
Management Fees ,
Private Investment Funds ,
Proposed Regulation ,
U.S. Treasury