Securities Enforcement

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On December 5, 2025, the Securities and Exchange Commission consented to modifications to the Global Research Settlement applicable to settling firms, which has been in place since the aftermath of the dot‑com bubble bursting. The Settlement contains an Addendum with undertakings that address conflicts of interest between research and investment banking. The Addendum includes a…

On November 17, 2025, the staff of the Division of Trading and Markets (the “Staff”) of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) issued no-action relief permitting a registered representative-owned personal services entity (“PSE”) to receive transaction-based compensation (“TBC”) without registering as a broker-dealer (“BD”) pursuant to Section 15(b) of the Securities Exchange Act of…

Under new SEC leadership, the Division’s 2026 Examination Priorities reflect a modified approach, following a reevaluation of the Division’s risk-based priorities, and a renewed focus on several traditional risk areas (including Regulation Best Interest, adherence to fiduciary standards of conduct, complex products and the Broker-Dealer Financial Responsibility Rules) as well as continued attention to emerging …

On October 7, 2025, U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC” or the “Commission”) Chairman Paul Atkins presented the 25th Annual A.A. Sommer, Jr. Lecture on Corporate, Securities, and Financial Law at Fordham University.  Chairman Atkins’ speech touched upon two topics of particular interest—the Wells process and the simultaneous consideration of settlement offers and related…

Webinar | March 20, 2025
12:00 p.m. – 1:00 p.m. EST
Register here.

Join us for the latest installment in the Banking & Financial Services Litigation webinar series, Supreme Court Roundup: Recent Decisions and Upcoming Cases. The current term of the US Supreme Court will see rulings on many important business issues, including class…

The Managed Funds Association (MFA) published a letter dated January 20, 2025, to Acting Chair Mark T. Uyeda of the US Securities and Exchange Commission, outlining several policy recommendations for the SEC’s consideration.

The MFA urged the SEC to withdraw its appeal of the “Dealer Rule,” which was vacated by the US District Court of…

On January 27, 2025, US Securities and Exchange Commission Commissioner Hester Peirce gave the keynote address at the Northwestern Securities Regulation Institute in which she offered her personal views on how public companies and, to some extent, the SEC in working with public companies might move away from “importing politics and contentious social issues” into…

The Securities and Exchange Commission’s Office of the Investor Advocate recently released its Report on Activities for the Fiscal Year 2024 to Congress.  The Securities Exchange Act of 1934 requires the Investor Advocate to file two reports annually with Congress.  The Office is mandated to assist retail investors, identify problems that investors may have, analyze…

Priorities Include Artificial Intelligence and Other Emerging Technologies, Complex Products, Reg BI, Cybersecurity, Outsourcing, Private Funds and Compliance with New and Amended SEC Rules

On October 21, 2024, the Division of Examinations (the “Division”) of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) released its examination priorities for fiscal year 2025 (which started October 1, 2024).

On September 25, 2024, the Securities and Exchange Commission announced the settlement of twenty-one enforcement actions related to untimely reports required by Section 13(d) or 13(g) of the Securities Exchange Act, Section 16(a) of the statute, or some combination of the provisions. The twenty-three respondents in the proceedings included thirteen firms, several of which are…