In a May 21, brief filed with the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit in Thaddeus North v. U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the SEC turned “should have known” liability into a strict liability standard.[1] The D.C. Circuit should not apply this interpretation.
During March 2020, one of the most streamed shows was Tiger King, a documentary about “Joe Exotic” a/k/a Joseph Allen Schreibvogel a/k/a Joseph Allen Maldonado-Passage, a “zoo owner [who] spirals out of control amid a cast of eccentric characters in this true murder-for-hire story from the underworld of big cat breeding:’1 Thus, Tiger King has much in common with the securities enforcement matters from March: fraud, broken rules, sanctions, and (arguably) eccentric characters. One big difference, of course, is that last month’s enforcement matters did not involve cat breeding, big or small. (We can’t make any promises about April’s enforcement actions.) Thus, the March enforcement matters present important lessons for broker-dealers and investment advisers (as well as important lessons for zoo owners, assuming that the zoo is an outside business activity).
From our friends at Hardin Compliance Consulting LLC, helpful guidance for broker dealers and RIAs, as they plan their return:
June Regulatory Updates from Cari Hopsfenperger at Hardin Compliance Consulting LLC.
Topics include:
On March 25, 2020 the SEC issued several exemptive orders to extend temporary COVID-19 relief.
· The relief further extends the filing periods covered by its previously enacted conditional reporting relief for certain public company filing obligations.
· The relief further extends regulatory relief previously provided to funds and investment advisers whose operations may be affected by COVID-19.
· The SEC and its staff also provided public company disclosure guidance.