Builder of Investment Models Deviates From Blueprints Employee’s Rogue Remodeling Costs Builder Plenty -
The SEC’s recent order instituting administrative and cease-and-desist proceedings (OIP) against registered...more
5/8/2025
/ Algorithms ,
Annuities ,
Compensation & Benefits ,
Employee Benefits ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Investment ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Funds ,
Investment Management ,
Life Insurance ,
Registered Investment Advisors ,
Retirement Plan ,
Risk Management ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation
Since its establishment more than a dozen years ago, the SEC’s whistleblower program has grown substantially — in terms of the number of whistleblower tips received by the SEC, as well as the number and dollar amount of...more
5/2/2025
/ Annual Reports ,
Corporate Governance ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Penalties ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Fraud ,
Securities Regulation ,
Whistleblower Awards ,
Whistleblower Protection Policies ,
Whistleblowers
A shift in leadership at the Securities and Exchange Commission often brings significant changes in regulatory priorities and enforcement approaches. As anticipated in our firm’s EO Watch alert, “Immediate Practical...more
3/25/2025
/ Administrative Appointments ,
Cryptocurrency ,
Executive Orders ,
Financial Markets ,
Financial Regulatory Reform ,
Investment ,
Investment Adviser ,
Proposed Rules ,
Regulatory Agencies ,
Regulatory Agenda ,
Regulatory Requirements ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation ,
Trump Administration
Last year, the Securities and Exchange Commission amended its definition of “dealer” to require broker-dealer registration by some persons or entities previously considered securities “traders” not subject to such...more
A large number of the executive actions, including executive orders (EOs) and memoranda, that President Trump has been issuing can have important consequences for companies that make filings or have other business with the...more
Is FINRA constitutional? According to the D.C. Circuit’s November 2024 opinion in Alpine Securities Corp. v. FINRA, FINRA proceedings may be unconstitutional in one narrow set of circumstances. ...more
2/4/2025
/ Administrative Procedure Act ,
Appeals ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Constitutional Challenges ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ,
Financial Services Industry ,
Regulatory Authority ,
Regulatory Oversight ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation
Section 47(b) of the Investment Company Act of 1940 provides that contracts that violate or “whose performance involves, a violation of” the act are not enforceable by “either party.” ...more
1/30/2025
/ Corporate Governance ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Investment ,
Investment Company Act of 1940 ,
Investment Funds ,
Investment Management ,
Mutual Funds ,
Private Right of Action ,
SCOTUS ,
Section 47(b) ,
Securities Litigation ,
Securities Regulation ,
Securities Violations ,
Shareholders
In a recent enforcement action, the SEC concluded that the relationship between James Craigie and an officer of Church & Dwight Co. fatally undermined Craigie’s status as an “independent director” of the company under New...more
1/28/2025
/ Board of Directors ,
Corporate Governance ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Enforcement Actions ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Independent Directors ,
Investment Adviser ,
Mutual Funds ,
NYSE ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation
Gone With the Wind?
Closed-End Funds Risk Extinction -
Shares of SEC-registered closed-end funds (CEFs) have long held significant potential advantages for some investors. For example, unlike shares of mutual funds...more
10/16/2024
/ Cybersecurity ,
Employee Benefits ,
Employee Retirement Income Security Act (ERISA) ,
Federal Trade Commission (FTC) ,
Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) ,
Insurance Regulations ,
Investment ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Management ,
Life Insurance ,
NAIC ,
Retirement Plan ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation ,
Social Media
With increasing frequency, petitioners representing the securities industry are asking courts to decide that rules adopted by the SEC exceed the agency’s authority, even when the rules have barely left the starting blocks....more
In February, a federal district judge in the District of Columbia awarded proxy advisers a victory by vacating an SEC rule provision that they opposed....more
The SEC recently adopted amendments to its investment company “names” rule that apply to most SEC-registered funds, including underlying funds in which registered insurance company separate accounts invest....more
Though “insider trading” has long been recognized as an illegal and abusive way to cheat in the securities trading game, new potential forms of this activity have recently emerged. ...more
In February 2023, the SEC adopted rule amendments that require most securities transactions effected by broker-dealers to be settled within one business day (T+1), rather than the currently required two business days. The SEC...more
Those with nonpublic information about a merger or acquisition involving a company appear to be profiting by trading in shares of exchange-traded funds based on indexes that include such companies’ shares, according to a...more
SEC Divided on Securities Law Exemptions -
SEC Commissioner Hester Peirce in October published an explanation of her dissent from an SEC enforcement action concerning certain collective investment vehicles established by a...more
As spring begins, and after many years of fertilizing and watering by industry representatives, the SEC has adopted comprehensive reforms to its disclosure requirements for variable annuities (VAs) and variable life insurance...more
An April 11, 2019, Office of Management and Budget Memorandum seeks to bring certain guidance issued by federal agencies, including the SEC, under more effective scrutiny. By its terms, the Memorandum applies to agency rules,...more
On June 5, 2019, the SEC adopted a four-part regulatory package that includes: new Regulation Best Interest (Reg. BI), the related “Relationship Summary” disclosure form (Form CRS), and two interpretations of the Advisers...more
7/12/2019
/ Best Interest Standard ,
Broker-Dealer ,
Consumer Insurance Products ,
Disclosure Requirements ,
Duty of Care ,
Duty of Loyalty ,
Fiduciary Duty ,
Form CRS ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Management ,
Life Insurance ,
New Rules ,
Regulation Best Interest ,
Regulation BI ,
Retail Investors ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation ,
Securities Transactions ,
Standard of Conduct
The increasingly widespread use and acceptance of various types of online communications have made it more attractive — for both firms and clients — to conduct business online, while at the same time making it more doubtful...more
4/5/2019
/ Consumer Insurance Products ,
Electronic Communications ,
Investment Adviser ,
Investment Management ,
Mobile Apps ,
OCIE ,
Risk Alert ,
Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) ,
Securities Regulation ,
Telecommunications ,
Text Messages