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Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Contract Terms

BCLP

SEC Again Cracks Down on Companies That Restrict Whistleblowers

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As discussed in our December 15, 2023 client alert, the SEC has waged an aggressive effort to enforce alleged violations of the whistleblower protection rule.  On September 9, 2024, the SEC announced settled charges resulting...more

Thomas Fox - Compliance Evangelist

Addressing Pre-taliation

One of the most talked about subjects in corporate compliance is the issue of pre-taliation—an increasingly common enforcement target by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). Matt Kelly and I did a recent podcast...more

BCLP

Selected Recent Developments for Public Companies

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Public companies should take note of several recent developments, including: ..Reversal of the Pegasystems trade secrets lawsuit that nevertheless preserves guidance to take care when describing litigation as “without...more

Seward & Kissel LLP

Class Action Suit Filed Against Morgan Stanley Over Rates on Bank Deposit Program

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On June 14, 2024, a class action lawsuit was filed in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York against Morgan Stanley alleging a breach of its fiduciary duty to customers and unjust enrichment by, among...more

Carlton Fields

SEC Penalizes Anti-Whistleblower Provision in Customer Settlement Agreements

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The SEC has opened a new track in the whistleblower litigation derby. While SEC enforcement actions concerning whistleblower violations are nothing new, they typically involve claims that companies precluded employees from...more

Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart,...

SEC Takes on Nondisclosure Agreements to Protect Whistleblower Program; Fines Firm $10 Million

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) in recent years has taken an aggressive stance against employers over employment agreements that the agency believes impede its whistleblower program—as highlighted by a $10...more

Seyfarth Shaw LLP

SEC Continues to Police Confidentiality Provisions for Theoretical Whistleblower Suppression

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The Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) levied an $18 million fine against J.P. Morgan Securities, LLC (“JPMS”) for allegedly including overbroad release provisions in settlement agreements. This marks the continuation...more

BakerHostetler

Employers Beware: Broad Confidentiality and Severance Clauses May Violate Whistleblower Protection Laws

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Employers should check their confidentiality and severance agreements for a common oversight that, for some, is becoming a costly error. Recent enforcement activity by the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) of Rule...more

Ogletree, Deakins, Nash, Smoak & Stewart,...

SEC Fines Private Employer for Language in Employee Separation Agreements That Restricted Whistleblower Awards

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) recently settled charges alleging that a company’s employee separation agreements restricted former employees from receiving monetary awards for reporting securities law...more

Dinsmore & Shohl LLP

SEC Enforcement Orders Issued for Employment & Separation Agreement Terms

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The SEC issued enforcement orders against three companies for including terms in their employment and separation agreements that violated Rule 21F-17(a) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1942, commonly known as the...more

Womble Bond Dickinson

Recent Whistleblower Enforcement Actions Highlight SEC Focus On Employee Agreements

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In September, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) announced the settlement of three enforcement actions for violations of SEC whistleblower protection laws. In the actions, the SEC asserted that the...more

Holland & Knight LLP

SEC Settlements Over Whistleblower Protections Pile Up

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As the SEC closed its fiscal year, it filed three separate enforcement actions against companies for purported violations of Rule 21F-17 under the Securities and Exchange Act of 1934, which prohibits persons from impeding...more

Stark & Stark

Navigating 2023's Employment Landscape: Legal Compliance and the Perils of Template Reuse

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So far, 2023 has proven to be a particularly active year in the employment space, with federal government agencies weighing in on a variety of issues. Of note, severance agreements have been a specific target of both the...more

Goodwin

SEC Announces the First Enforcement Action under the New Marketing Rule

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The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) announced on August 21, 2023 that it has settled with a FinTech registered investment adviser (the “Adviser”) that offers multiple investment strategies, including a...more

Goodwin

NLRB Concludes that Separation Agreement Provisions Prohibiting Disparagement and Requiring Confidentiality of Agreement Terms...

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In its recent decision in McLaren Macomb, the National Labor Relations Board (“NLRB” or the “Board”) concluded that provisions in employment separation agreements prohibiting disparagement of the employer and requiring...more

The Volkov Law Group

Contract to Invoice to Payment (“Tinkers to Evers to Chance”) (Part II of II)

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The SEC knows that it has powerful enforcement tools. The FCPA imposes two important requirements on issuers – keep accurate books and records and maintain internal controls to ensure that management’s accounting controls...more

Eversheds Sutherland (US) LLP

SEC enforcement action highlights evolution in SEC’s stance on hedge clauses in advisory agreements

In the second full week of the new year, the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) settled an administrative action against Comprehensive Capital Management (CCM), a registered investment adviser, for, among other...more

Proskauer - Whistleblower Defense

SEC Alleges Employer’s Compliance Manual Violates Rule 21F-17

On June 23, 2021, the SEC announced that Guggenheim Securities, LLC (“Company”) agreed to settle charges that it violated Rule 21F-17 by including language in its compliance manual and training materials that allegedly...more

Stinson LLP

SEC Increases Qualified Client Threshold

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In an order effective August 16, 2021, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) increased the dollar amount tests in the "qualified client" definition under Advisers Act Rule 205-3....more

Faegre Drinker Biddle & Reath LLP

SEC Adopts New Rule 498A for Variable Contracts

On March 11, 2020, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission adopted new Rule 498A under the Securities Act of 1933, as amended, and related form and rule amendments. The new rule and amendments are intended to modernize...more

Farrell Fritz, P.C.

Unconscionability Defense Fails to Raise Issue of Fact - Legal Woes for the Whistleblower who Turned Down his Award

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In 2015, our colleagues in the white-collar criminal defense bar braced for the impact of a memorandum penned by then Deputy Attorney General Sally Yates.  The Yates Memo encouraged both federal prosecutors and civil...more

White & Case LLP

COVID-19 and your deal: Considerations for underwriters in the COVID-19 environment

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COVID-19 presents novel issues for underwriters, who are grappling with the need to support their clients accessing funding and also maintain disclosure standards and manage their risk when the typical tools that they use to...more

Dechert LLP

COVID-19 Coronavirus: Facing a Global Challenge: Key Considerations for Fund Managers

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The outbreak of the COVID-19 coronavirus is causing business disruption on an unprecedented scale. After more than a decade of sustained economic growth, market volatility and central bank intervention has returned. ...more

Proskauer Rose LLP

SEC and PCAOB Issue Joint Statement on the Effects of Coronavirus on Financial Reporting

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The World Health Organization declared the outbreak of novel coronavirus (COVID-19) a public health emergency of international concern on January 30. The situation is evolving daily around the world, including in the United...more

Proskauer Rose LLP

Coronavirus: Details Matter

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As the Coronavirus (COVID-19) continues to disrupt markets and industries globally, businesses face significant internal and external challenges with how to identify and plan for issues caused by the outbreak. In response,...more

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