Regulatory Enforcement

A recent decision by the Delaware Chancery Court that exempted corporate directors from liability in the current financial mess could prove helpful to other directors facing similar sub-prime and credit crisis-related derivative claims. In a 58-page decision that provided some of the court’s most expansive comment ever on the subject, the Chancery Court ruled Feb. […]

As lawmakers step up efforts to revamp U.S. financial regulation, Commissioner Elisse Walter recently weighed in with her view on the principles that should guide legislative and regulatory efforts-including the future role of the Securities and Exchange Commission. In March 2 remarks before the Institute of International Bankers, Walter detailed five principles that regulators and […]

Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Mary Schapiro offered some details about what’s on her agenda for the coming year as she took to the Hill this week to convince lawmakers to increase the agency’s funding. During March 11 testimony before a House Sub-committee, Schapiro detailed an ambitious agenda that includes improvement the SEC’s risk-based oversight […]

In the days leading up to Nov. 16, 2005, the stock prices and trading volumes of several companies with asbestos-related liabilities including USG Corp., W.R. Grace & Co., and Crown Holdings, began to spike up in an otherwise flat market. No publicly available news about these companies or the industry explained the increases in price […]

Incoming SEC Director of Enforcement Robert Khuzami will begin his employment with the SEC on March 30, 2009, SEC spokesman John Nester told Securities Docket today. Nester also stated that February 27 was the last day at the SEC for Linda Thomsen, the former Director of Enforcement who announced on February 9, 2009, that she […]

In keeping with a confirmation hearing pledge, Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Mary Schapiro unveiled a plan aimed at improving the way the agency handles the hundreds of thousands whistleblower complaints and enforcement tips it receives each year. The agency’s processes for handling tips and complaints became a topic of conversation in recent months following […]

House lawmakers are slated March 5 to hold the first in a series of hearings to examine how to improve the ability of the government to prevent private sector activities from putting at risk the stability of the U.S. economy. Pennsylvania Democrat Paul Kanjorski, chairman of the Sub-committee on Capital Markets, Insurance, and Government Sponsored […]

A recent U.S. Supreme Court ruling has again widened the scope of when an employee can sue for whistleblower retaliation, and companies would do well to reconsider how they conduct investigations as a result of it. The case, Crawford v. Metropolitan Government of Nashville, involved three women interviewed as part of an internal investigation of […]

Early signs indicate that Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Mary Schapiro will make good on her confirmation hearing promises to bolster the agency’s beleaguered enforcement division. In her first weeks on the job, Schapiro announced changes to the agency’s enforcement policies and promised more to come, driving predictions for a “bigger, stronger, faster enforcement program,” […]