As discussed here and here, on June 2, 2015, Sen. Elizabeth Warren wrote SEC Chair White a 13-page letter expressing her “disappointment” in various aspects of Chair White’s performance as head of the agency. Sen. Warren’s stated that her grievances fell into four key areas: (1) the SEC ‘s failure to finalize important Dodd-Frank rules requiring disclosure of the ratio of CEO pay to the median worker; (2) the SEC’s failure to curb the use of waivers for companies found to be in violation of securities law; (3) the SEC continuing to settle the vast majority of its cases without requiring that companies admit guilt; and (4) Chair White having to recuse herself in numerous cases because of her prior employment at a Wall Street defense law firm and her husband’s ongoing employment at a Wail Street defense law firm.
In a letter dated July 10, 2015, Chair White wrote back in response to Sen. Warren’s specific complaints and to reiterate her pride “in the agency’s many important accomplishments during my tenure as SEC Chair.” On the subject of her recusals from certain cases, Chair White stated that it was discussed both prior to and at her confirmation hearing that for a period of two years (which has now passed), she would like all other former SEC Chairs and Commissioners need to recuse herself from certain matters. Specifically, those matters included ones in which she had a potential financial interest or other potential conflicts arising from her prior legal practice or that of her spouse’s law firm.
