All Regulatory Enforcement articles – Page 174
-
Blog
Gallagher: Dodd-Frank Has SEC 'Shoveling Manure' for 'No Discernible Purpose'
Following the Republicans takeover of the U.S. Senate in Tuesday's national elections, Republicans will now control both the House and the Senate for the first time since 2006. Some commentators are already speculating that this development brings with it the "first real prospect of changes" to the Dodd-Frank Wall Street ...
-
Blog
SEC Seeks to Distribute $602 Million in SAC Capital Settlement to Investors
The SEC will attempt to distribute the funds from its $602 million insider trading settlement with SAC Capital to the people who were on the other (losing) side of those trades, Reuters reports. Ethan Wohl, lead attorney for the group of investors who allege they were the victims of these ...
-
Blog
EU Securities, Markets Regulator Releases 2014 Enforcement Priorities
Image: Title: MaijoorNov. 5—The European Securities and Markets Authority has released common enforcement priorities for the year, which will be used by both ESMA and national regulators. These priorities include preparation and presentation of consolidated financial statements, financial reporting by entities with joint arrangements, and recognition and measurement of deferred ...
-
Blog
EU Banking Union Begins Supervision; New Regulations on Horizon
Image: Title: NouyNov. 5—In a major milestone for the long-anticipated banking union, the European Central Bank has begun its role as the single supervisor for the Eurozone’s banking sector. The ECB’s Single Supervisory Mechanism (SSM) will directly oversee 120 of the area’s biggest banks and indirectly oversee more than 3,000 ...
-
Article
Regulators Are Once Again in Hot Pursuit of Worker Misclassification
Image: Title: HanrahanState and federal agencies are issuing a renewed warning to companies that regularly use independent contractors: classify them correctly, or face big penalties. They are also putting more funds into detection and enforcement, meaning companies are likely to see an increase in audits. “I would expect to see ...
-
Blog
DaVita Healthcare to Pay $350 Million for False Claims Act Violations
DaVita Healthcare Partners, a dialysis services provider, agreed last month to pay $350 million to the Department of Justice to resolve claims that it violated the False Claims Act by paying kickbacks to physicians or physician groups to induce the referral of patients to its dialysis clinics. “This case involved ...
-
Blog
Hyundai, Kia Pay Record $100 Million for Misrepresenting Fuel Efficiency
Hyundai Motor America and Kia Motors America agreed this week to pay $100 million—the largest civil penalty ever secured under the Clean Air Act—for making inaccurate representations of their vehicles’ performance and emissions. The auto makers also must implement training and enhanced audit testing of their vehicles to prevent such ...
-
Blog
HSBC Legal, Compliance Costs Surpass $1.6 Billion
Image: Title: GulliverNov. 4—London-based HSBC Holdings has set aside more than $1.6 billion to cover legal costs in connection with regulatory investigations and to make enhancements to its compliance operations. Of that amount, HSBC set aside $378 million to resolve claims with the U.K. Financial Conduct Authority that the bank ...
-
Blog
Bio-Rad Laboratories Will Pay $55M to Settle FCPA Charges
The Securities and Exchange Commission has charged Bio-Rad Laboratories, a life sciences research company, with violating the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act when its subsidiaries made improper payments to foreign officials in Russia, Vietnam, and Thailand to win business. The company, which self-reported the misconduct, agreed to pay $55 million to ...
-
Blog
SEC Charges Two Friends With 'Audacious' Insider Trading Scheme
Late last week the SEC announced its latest insider trading case, which was filed against two friends and former business school classmates who allegedly used inside information to generate nearly $700,000 in illicit profits. The SEC alleged that Zachary Zwerko, a financial analyst at a major pharmaceutical company, learned about ...
-
Blog
Brazil Gets Praise and a Push from OECD on Anti-Bribery Efforts
Oct. 30—Brazil is getting both a pat on the back and a push forward from the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development regarding its anti-bribery efforts. OECD’s Working Group on Bribery said this week that Brazil “must build on the positive momentum” started with its new Corporate Liability Law and ...
-
Blog
For One Day, At Least, Australia a 'Paradise for White Collar Criminals'
In remarks at a business journalism awards lunch last week in Australia, Greg Medcraft, the Chairman of the Australian Securities & Investments Commission, made some startlingly candid remarks about the state of Australia's ability to prosecute and penalize white collar crime. Medcraft noted that ASIC had conducted a review of ...
-
Article
CFPB Offers No-Action Letters With Strings Attached
Image: Title: LampeFinancial firms worried about an enforcement action from the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau may soon get a reprieve. The agency has proposed a no-action letter policy that would let financial firms test the regulatory waters before they roll out new financial products. The application process, however, requires much ...
-
ArticleHow to Tell if Your Whistleblower Hotline Is Effective
As companies strive to keep investigations internal, rather than risk high-profile regulatory intervention, improving the hotlines they use to solicit employee tips and concerns is crucial. Using metrics and industry benchmarks can help, but measuring the effectiveness of internal whistleblower efforts may be the hardest part. Some tips and trends ...
-
ArticleSEC Enforcement Trends: Targeting Gatekeepers and Rewarding Tipsters
The Securities and Exchange Commission brought a record-breaking number of enforcement actions in fiscal year 2014, including several against compliance and audit executives. That should come as no surprise: Enforcement Director Andrew Ceresney (pictured above) warned last spring that the SEC wouldn’t hesitate to pursue executives, including compliance professionals, when ...
-
Article
As Tech Firms Enter the Payments Space, Regulators Are Watching
Last month Apple plunged into the world of payment processing with its Apple Pay service that allows its mobile devices to make payments at retailers. Rivals Google, Microsoft, and Facebook have already dabbled in the market that includes Pay Pal and several others. These disruptive technologies may prompt regulators to ...
-
Blog
Western Union Gets Its Fourth Compliance Monitor
For the fourth time in as many years, Western Union has received a new independent compliance monitor as part of an anti-money laundering settlement agreement reached with the state of Arizona in 2010. Earlier this month, the Superior Court of Arizona approved the replacement of Western Union’s former court-appointed compliance ...
-
Blog
Few Countries Make Good on OECD Anti-Bribery Pledge
Oct. 23—Despite a 15-year-old promise to do so, many of the world’s leading economies are failing to do enough to prevent corruption and bribery. The Organization for Economic Co-operation and Development’s Anti-Bribery Convention, adopted in 1997, was a pledge by 41 countries to make foreign bribery a crime. Years later, ...
-
Blog
Lawyerless Allen Stanford Files 299-Page Brief Appealing His Conviction
"Life comes at you fast," doesn't it Allen Stanford? (Just ask MC Hammer).One day you are have a net worth of $2.2 billion, an office with its own five-star dining room, movie theater, professional kitchen and wine bar, and island nations such as Antigua are granting you knighthood. The next ...
-
Blog
Securities Docket Announces Inaugural Class of 'Enforcement Hall of Fame'
At the conclusion of Securities Enforcement Forum 2014 last week, Securities Docket announced the eight members of the inaugural class of its "Enforcement Hall of Fame." The Enforcement Hall of Fame honors the lawyers who have made the "most extraordinary contributions to, and impact upon, the field of securities ...