For the better part of a decade, the U.S. Justice Department has led the way on calls for a strong, independent corporate compliance function – until recently, that is. Then the Department of Health and Human Services leaped...more
The issue of chief compliance officer (CCO) liability has long been debated; it has become a grave concern for CCOs, CEOs, and other C-suite executives who put on “too many hats” within an organization and take on the firm’s...more
Dear YouDig?, It has been a struggle lately. We don’t have trouble getting work. In fact we are booming. The problem: We can’t seem to close out a project without email accusations, letter campaigns, lawyers and a whole...more
Rochester Drug Co-Operative, Inc. (“RDC”), one of the 10 largest pharmaceutical distributors in the United States, was recently charged along with its former Chief Executive Officer and former Chief Compliance Officer, for...more
As I noted in yesterday’s blog post, at the Ethics and Compliance Initiative (ECI) Impact 2019 Conference, Assistant Attorney General Brian Benczkowski announced (ECI speech) an update to the 2017 Evaluation of Corporate...more
Fund and Investment Management January 2019 (No. 1) REGULATORY UPDATES Policy Initiatives Set Forth by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s (“SEC”) Investment Management Division On September 28, 2018, Division of...more
New Rules, Proposed Rules, Guidance and Alerts - SEC STAFF GUIDANCE AND ALERTS – SEC Staff No-Action Letter Allows Fund Boards to Rely on CCO Representations for Affiliated Transactions – In a no-action letter to the...more
The Staff of the SEC’s Division of Investment Management has issued a no-action letter permitting a fund’s board to rely on written representations from the fund’s CCO in lieu of quarterly determinations that the fund’s...more
When faced with a compliance issue or an obstacle you should endeavor to keep everything on an even keel and never let them see you sweat. ...more
If a team from the SEC arrives at your office and says, “We are conducting an on-site examination and would like to talk to the CCO right now,” are you prepared? A handful of registered investment advisers have faced surprise...more
It is time for an honesty check – many CCOs do not like change. CCOs, however, need to embrace change as a powerful force. Compliance is an evolutionary process – it is constantly changing. A compliance program has to move...more
The Corporate Compliance Officer (CCO) acts as the organizational conscience overseeing the compliance program. Corporate integrity promotes a strong brand reputation, avoids high-profile failures and contributes to a strong...more
The secret of life is honesty and fair dealing. If you can fake that, you’ve got it made. Groucho Marx - We are all taught the importance of honesty. But there are very different aspects to this otherwise simple...more
This week I have been exploring the different types compliance committee’s which an organization can utilize to help effect a best practices compliance program. I have written about compliance committee’s at the Board of...more
CCOs face many challenges in their jobs. One area that is difficult but usually can be solved with common sense is where to draw the line on attorney-client privilege issues. As a practicing attorney, I can attest to the...more
Once again it’s time for our annual review of trends and events that will impact your Ethics and Compliance (E&C) program in the year ahead. This year presents a unique challenge. We are preparing our predictions...more
Violations of state anti-money laundering laws tripped up the Agricultural Bank of China, which recently entered into a consent order with New York's Department of Financial Services for $215 million....more
CMS authorizes Massachusetts waiver supporting transition to a Medicaid ACO model; Oregon CCOs use “flexible service” funds to invest in housing-related services; and enrollment for 2017 Marketplace coverage begins....more
Join professionals in ethics and compliance, human resources, legal, audit and training for the annual 2016 Ethics & Compliance Virtual Conference! Learn strategies to help you build a better governed, more risk-aware, and...more
Oregon has requested $1.25 billion in federal funding to expand the Oregon Health Plan (OHP), a coordinated care model implemented under Section 1115(a) of the Social Security Act. The current OHP Section 1115 demonstration...more
On November 4, 2015, Andrew Ceresney, director of the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC’s) Division of Enforcement (Enforcement Division), delivered the keynote address at the 2015 National Conference of the National...more
Resources to help you engage your board of directors in the success of your ethics and compliance program. A successful board engagement strategy can help ethics and compliance professionals gain significant program...more
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC or Commission) issued a cease and desist order (Order) on June 23, 2015, against Pekin Singer Strauss Asset Management Inc. (Adviser), an investment adviser registered under...more
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC or Commission) recently proposed amendments to Form ADV and to Rule 204-2 (Recordkeeping Rule) and other rules under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, as amended (Advisers...more
One of the things that I am questioned on is when to bring in outside counsel for a Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) investigation or simply to take a look at an issue that may have raised a Red Flag but is not yet a FCPA...more