White Collar Defense and Investigations

Securities & Regulatory Enforcement

Federal regulatory agencies, including the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), and Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), as well as self-regulating organizations such as Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), and state and local agencies are mandated to vigorously pursue actions against the owners, managers, and employees of financial services firms. These agencies often use administrative proceedings to seek rigorous sanctions that can debilitate an organization.

WMH lawyers have a history of counseling corporate clients regarding the full spectrum of regulatory and compliance issues. Our team has worked diligently on complex, high-profile, and contested matters, producing positive outcomes including complete exoneration.

Experience

  • Represent a President & Chief Operating Officer at a publicly traded investment company in an investigation by the SEC into alleged violations of the securities laws.
  • Conducted an independent internal investigation for the broker-dealer unit of a Fortune 50 company based on allegations of trading improprieties.
  • Conducted an independent internal investigation for a major hedge fund for alleged misappropriation of client funds and improper accounting practices. After our internal investigation exonerated CEO, the SEC declined to file case against the fund and its CEO.
  • Represented the Chief Accounting Officer at a large regional bank in an SEC investigation involving allegations of accounting violations.
  • Represented a trading desk manager under investigation by the SEC for internationally failing to comply with terms of pre-release agreements between certain U.S. banks and ADR broker firms. The DOJ’s Antitrust Division initiated a related investigation to determine whether there is collusion between various ADR broker firms.
  • Representing the former head of interest rate swap trading at a multinational bank in connection with private antitrust claims alleging that derivatives dealers colluded to restrain competition in the swap market.
  • Represented the former General Counsel of a major New York and New Jersey public benefit corporation in parallel SEC and state grand jury investigations into allegations of federal securities fraud and violations of New York’s Martin Act. The SEC and the New York County District Attorney’s Office each closed their inquiries without filing charges.
  • Represented an associate portfolio manager at a leading multi-fund investment manager in an investigation by the SEC into alleged mismarking of assets. After hearing our presentation, the SEC declined to pursue any action against our client.
  • Represented a real estate investment firm in an investigation of its business practices by the SEC, which concluded its investigation without pursuing any action against our client.
  • Over the course of several years, represented a U.S.-based multinational investment bank and financial services company and its employees in a variety of regulatory and government investigations, including in investigations by the DOJ, the SEC, FINRA, and other state regulators and enforcement agencies.

 

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