Debevoise is a market leader in navigating complex securities-related government investigations and enforcement actions. Amid elevated levels of securities enforcement activity and an increasingly complex and unsettled legal and regulatory environment fraught with risk and exposure, Debevoise successfully guides clients through securities-related examinations and investigations brought by the SEC and numerous other government agencies and self-regulatory organizations, including the Department of Justice, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (“FINRA”), the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (“PCAOB”), NASDAQ and the New York Stock Exchange, the UK Financial Conduct Authority, the UK Serious Fraud Office and state securities regulators and attorneys general.
Debevoise has an unparalleled, comprehensive understanding of the SEC’s enforcement and examination programs. Drawing from a bench of securities law practitioners with more than 100 years of combined experience at the highest levels of the SEC—including a former SEC Chair, former SEC Director of Enforcement and several former SEC senior officers—Debevoise has counseled a diverse array of market participants that face exposure to securities-related examinations and enforcement, including public and private companies, investment advisers, broker-dealers, accounting firms, financial advisory businesses, financial institutions, insurance companies, digital asset companies and exchanges, fintech companies, emerging growth companies, board directors and executive-level employees.
We have advised clients through the entire life cycle of securities-related proceedings, from anticipatory pre-regulatory/internal investigations to examinations, subpoena responses, high-stakes enforcement contexts, hearings and litigation, on a comprehensive range of matters prioritized in recent years by the SEC and other agencies, including private fund and other investment advisory issues, broker-dealer practices, financial reporting, accounting controls, insider trading, AML, FCPA, market manipulation, crypto-related issues and cybersecurity.
Debevoise also has extensive experience in successfully defending against many securities-related matters brought by other, increasingly active government agencies and self-regulatory organizations, including FINRA and the PCAOB. Our deep experience gives clients a significant advantage in the face of regulatory scrutiny across a broad range of securities-related enforcement, examination and compliance issues. Debevoise’s trial-ready team is also highly experienced at successfully litigating matters against enforcement agencies if advocacy efforts fail and settlement is not possible, including securing a recent success in a high-profile litigation brought by the SEC against a digital asset firm.
Debevoise works zealously toward favorable resolutions while remaining mindful of its clients’ business, public relations and other objectives. Successfully navigating the complex legal, factual and practical nuances of these matters requires lawyers who possess deep understanding of the securities laws, rules and regulations, the enforcement agencies and the business considerations that necessarily guide any response to a securities enforcement matter, as well as the judgment to engage strategically with enforcement staff to achieve a satisfactory resolution.
Debevoise is unique in the industry for its highly collaborative approach to clients’ most complex securities matters. Our legal teams frequently give counsel in areas of the securities law that are complex and unsettled, drawing on the deep experience of the firm’s highly regarded regulatory and corporate practices, including its market-leading Capital Markets Group. Together, Debevoise is a comprehensive destination practice for clients facing securities-related regulatory scrutiny and collateral issues.