Last week, the Securities and Exchange Commission filed an amicus curiae supporting an extension of the statute of limitations for securities fraud.
The phrase amicus curiae, which is Latin for “friend of the court,” refers to a legal brief that is submitted to a court to present a particular point of view in a case. The briefs are typically submitted by entities that are not party to the case, but that have some interest in the outcome. In the SEC’s case, amicus briefs are often submitted if the outcome is likely to have a “substantial precedential impact,” limit the Commission’s jurisdiction, or cause a conflict between the federal securities laws and other federal or state law.
