Columbia Law School
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Securities Regulation
Akin Gump discusses SDNY Decision Allowing SEC Insider Trading Case to Proceed, Distinguishing Newman
A recent decision from the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York allowing a U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) civil enforcement action to proceed against two former stockbrokers for alleged insider trading violations sheds additional …
The Cost of Suing Business
To listen to the Chamber of Commerce, one would think that class actions are the most significant scourge on business ever conjured up by man. In brief after brief to the Supreme Court, the Chamber of Commerce and other business …
PwC discusses Cyber-security: Think Risk Not IT
Despite millions of dollars spent on enhancements, cybersecurity remains the area of risk management with the largest gap between threat and preparedness. As the frequency and sophistication of cyber attacks have increased significantly in recent years, counter measures have failed …
Chair Yellen discusses Finance and Society
Let me begin by thanking the organizers for inviting me to participate in this important dialogue on the role of finance in society. The financial sector is vital to the economy. A well-functioning financial sector promotes job creation, innovation, and …
The New Stock Market: Sense and Nonsense
Over the last few decades, how stocks are traded in the United States has been totally transformed. Gone are the dealers on NASDAQ and the specialists at the NYSE. Instead, a company’s stock can now be traded electronically on up …
Paul Hastings describes how CFPB’s Public Complaint Database Is Likely to Amplify Consumer Voice But Muffle Effective Provider Responses
The Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (the “CFPB” or “Bureau”) recently issued its final policy statement (the “Policy Statement”) enabling consumers to post on the CFPB’s web-based public consumer complaint database (the “Database”) complaints about consumer financial services in …
Chair White discusses the SEC as the Whistleblower’s Advocate
Thank you, David, for that kind introduction. I am very honored to address the Garrett Institute, one of the most important programs in the country for corporate and securities lawyers, and to be in David’s home territory of Northwestern Law …
WilmerHale discusses Central Register of Beneficial Ownership to be Introduced in the UK
On 26 March 2015, the United Kingdom Parliament passed into law the Small Business, Enterprise and Employment Act 2015 (the “Act”).
The Act will bring about a number of fundamental changes to UK company law including, amongst others, …
SEC Rules, Stakeholder Interests, and Cost-Benefit Analysis
The D.C. Circuit’s 2011 decision in Business Roundtable v. SEC , 647 F.3d 1144 (D.C. Cir. 2011) spawned a lot of debate regarding the value of cost-benefit analysis in financial regulation. On one side of the debate were those who …
Wachtell Lipton explains Some Lessons from DuPont-Trian
The ISS Report on the DuPont-Trian proxy contest calls attention to a number of important insights into ISS policies and practices and those of many of its institutional investor clients. Concomitantly, these policies illustrate the realities of the sharp increase …
Bail-in, Not Bail-out: Developing SIFI Resolution Strategies Around the Globe
The 2007-2009 financial crisis was a watershed event that shook the confidence of people around the globe in the stability of the international financial system. The crisis demonstrated a failure of market discipline and the government responses only exacerbated this …
Orrick discusses In re Polycom and the SEC’s Continued Focus on Internal Controls
Over the past year, the SEC and other regulatory agencies have initiated an increasing number of investigations into companies based on allegations of inadequate internal controls and/or a system for reporting those controls. (For more on internal controls and a …
How Big Data Will Revolutionize the Insurance Industry and Challenge Regulatory Bodies
The Big Data revolution has begun to have a transformative impact on commercial markets. Businesses are continually developing new ways to capitalize on the increased availability of analytic services and drastic reductions in the costs of data collection and storage. …
Institutional Investors’ Appetite for Alternatives
The emergence of alternative business entities[1] like benefit corporations, which facilitate pursuit of profit and purpose in the same endeavor, challenges the strict dichotomy between for-profit and non-profit corporations. Most alternative entities, including well-known brands like Warby Parker and …
Is the Price Right? An Empirical Study of Fee-Setting in Securities Class Actions
By motivating lawyers to handle class actions, fee awards enable millions of people to obtain access to justice every year and strengthen the effect of regulatory laws. But the process by which judges decide how much to pay lawyers has …
Morrison & Foerster discusses Supreme Court Decision Allowing Agencies to Reinterpret the Law at Their Discretion
In a decision published on March 9, 2015, the Supreme Court ended the D.C. Circuit Court’s Paralyzed Veterans doctrine, which required administrative agencies to utilize the Administrative Procedure Act’s (APA) notice-and-comment process in order to substantially alter an interpretation. See …
More on Navinder Singh Sarao, the Alleged Market Manipulator with Responsibility for the Flash Crash
For those interested in the allegations against Navinder Singh Sarao and Nav Sarao Futures Limited PLC, which implicate them in extensive market manipulation and the “Flash Crash” of 2010, here are the complaints from the DOJ and CFTC as well …
Foley & Lardner discusses Important Regulatory Developments for Proprietary Trading Firms and Broker-Dealers Using Algorithmic Trading Strategies
SEC Proposes Rule Extending FINRA Membership Requirement to Currently Exempted Proprietary Trading Firms
On March 25, 2015, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) voted unanimously to issue a proposed rule amendment that would significantly narrow the existing exemption that …
Two Audiences, Two Stories: Comparing What Companies Tell Regulators With What They Tell Investors
In 2010, the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) issued guidance that requires companies to tell shareholders how they may be harmed by proposed energy regulations, unless the company determines that the regulation will be unlikely to affect the company.[1]…