Enforcement Action

PCAOB Levies $2 Million Fine on E&Y, Four Partners

Tammy Whitehouse February 09, 2012

In its biggest enforcement action to date, the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board has fined Ernst & Young $2 million, sanctioned four current and former partners, and fined three of those partners a total of $100,000 to settle allegations that the firm violated auditing standards and rules.

Business Litigation: A Look Into 2012

Jaclyn Jaeger January 03, 2012

A volatile market, a tough regulatory environment, and enforcement actions against big banks will dominate business litigation in 2012, with many lawsuits targeting the financial services industry. As long as banks keep dropping "bombshells," they will continue to be "piñatas for shareholder lawsuits," says Michael Stocker, partner at law firm Labaton Sucharow. More inside.

SEC Takes Tougher Stance Against Investment Advisers

Jaclyn Jaeger January 03, 2012

The SEC wrapped up 2011 with a series of enforcement actions against investment advisers, complete with allegations of deficient compliance programs, since investment advisers are legally obligated to maintain reasonable compliance procedures. "Not all compliance failures result in fraud, but many frauds take root in compliance deficiencies," says SEC Enforcement Director Robert Khuzami.

Delaware Court Delivers Sharp Rebuke to Directors

Jaclyn Jaeger November 15, 2011

The Delaware Court of Chancery warned directors in two recent decisions to put the interests of the company and its shareholders first. In one case, the court found the directors breached their duty of loyalty by allowing the company's largest shareholder to exert undue influence. In another case, the court ruled that the board erred when it issued preferred shares as a defense mechanism. Details inside.

FSA Hitting Firms With Smaller Fines, On Average

Neil Baker July 16, 2011

The UK Financial Services Authority has hardened its enforcement strategy over the last two years, but when a few record cases are set aside the average fine imposed by the regulator against firms has actually fallen, according to a new analysis.

Satyam, Five Audit Firms Pay $17.5 Million in Penalties

Tammy Whitehouse April 06, 2011

Satyam and five audit firms under the PwC umbrella are paying $17.5 million and facing other sanctions and reforms imposed by regulators in connection with a $1 billion fraud scheme.

Judge Uncorks True Feelings About Compliance Monitors

Matt Kelly March 22, 2010

God, I love it when a federal judge goes off-script. Most events in federal court are terribly dull, the carefully scripted culmination of legal briefs fired back and forth among various parties for years. But once in a great while, a judge goes a little nuts—as happened last week with...

The Compliance Week in Preview

Matt Kelly February 21, 2010

We’ve got quite a week of compliance and governance news coming up this week, folks. I can’t recall the last time we’ve seen so many different stars in our particular universe align, so perhaps it’s worth drafting a scorecard for the week:Shareholder activism and disclosure. Remember that investor advisory committee...

Securities Regulation Institute, Concluded

Matt Kelly January 28, 2010

Last week I filed a dispatch from the Securities Regulation Institute’s annual conference out in San Diego, focusing on the first day’s agenda of SEC policy and risk management challenges. Before I forget, let’s circle back to review the main points of Day 2: enforcement.The stars of the day were...

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Survey of the Week

Deloitte is conducting their annual Look Before You Leap: Managing Risks in Global Investments survey to better understand the approaches companies are taking to address compliance and integrity-related risks in emerging markets.