Bruce Carton

So far in 2015, the Justice Department has settled just two corporate Foreign Corrupt Practices Act cases—notably lower than the 10 in 2014, nine in 2013, and 11 in 2012. According to the Wall Street Journal, the decline is due to a “sea change” in the Justice Department’s foreign corruption enforcement with its policy shift toward targeting the “worst offenders.” A DoJ spokesman told the WSJ that, despite the decline, the Department’s “commitment to FCPA enforcement is stronger than ever.” Is it? CW’s Bruce Carton explores further inside.

Market manipulation is nothing new, of course, but both the SEC and DOJ pursued a social media-age method of illegally moving the market last week when they brought securities fraud charges against a Scottish trader whose allegedly used “false tweets” to caused the stock prices of two companies to plunge.

At yesterday’s Securities Enforcement Forum 2015, a Directors Panel was held that included seven current or former SEC Directors of Enforcement–including Hon. Irving Pollack, the very first Enforcement Director, and Andrew Ceresney, the current Director.

SEC Fiscal Year 2015 enforcement results revealed that for the year ended Sept. 30, 2015, the Commission filed a record-high 807 enforcement actions and obtained orders totaling approximately $4.2 billion in disgorgement and penalties. Of these 807 enforcement actions, 507 were “independent actions,” with the other 300 actions being either delinquent filing actions against issuers or administrative proceedings seeking bars against individuals. Details inside.

A new, publicly-available database known as “SEED” tracks SEC enforcement actions against public companies. The database, from NYU and Cornerstone Research, will also provide the basis for ongoing academic analysis of trends in SEC enforcement.

This week, President Obama announced his intent to nominate Lisa Fairfax, currently a law professor at the George Washington University Law School, and Hester Peirce, a senior research fellow at the Financial Markets Working Group at George Mason University’s Mercatus Center, as SEC commissioners. If confirmed, Fairfax and Peirce will fill the Democrat and Republican seats on the Commission that are being vacated by Commissioners Luis Aguilar and Daniel Gallagher, respectively. More inside.

Yes, the Madoff trustee’s legal and professional fees have passed the $1 billion mark, but with the release today of more good news for Madoff victims, the trustee says that this $1 billion (and counting!) is a “very good return on an investment.”

Image: In a recent speech, SEC Commissioner Luis Aguilar stated that although the SEC does occasionally file cases against directors of public companies, “the vast majority of directors are embracing their responsibilities and are fulfilling them conscientiously. These directors should have nothing to fear from the SEC.” Aguilar said that while he knows directors also have concerns the SEC will second-guess their judgment and bring enforcement actions against them, “the reality is far different.” More from his speech inside.