I finished the charity bike ride across Massachusetts. There’s still time to donate. Look at the bottom of this update. Since, I’m off the bike, these are some of the compliance-related stories that recently caught my attention.
SEC Tries Flipping Witnesses by Jean Eaglesham in the Wall Street Journal
The SEC touts the cooperation program as a vital source of testimony for enforcing against financial wrongdoing. Critics, however, worry that key safeguards on the use of cooperators in criminal cases are lacking in the SEC’s administrative courts, where the agency brings the cases, appoints and pays the judges, has first say on appeals and the power to decide what to fine the cooperator after he or she testifies. [More…]
SEC Confirms Expansive View on Whistleblower Protections by Matt Kelly in Compliance Week
The interpretive guidance, posted to the SEC’s website on Aug. 4, clears up confusion about the word “whistleblower” as it appears in two different rules implementing Section 21F of the Securities Exchange Act. That section was created by Dodd-Frank to establish whistleblower protections and to create rewards for anyone who brings useful information to the SEC about corporate misconduct.
The question was whether a person must report possible misconduct to the SEC for the purpose of seeking a whistleblower reward—rewards are addressed by Rule 21F-9(a)—to qualify for anti-retaliation protections defined by Rule 21F-2(b)(1). [More…]
Implementing the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act by the Securities and Exchange Commission
The Commission has taken action to address virtually all of the mandatory rulemaking provisions of the Dodd-Frank Act. The overarching objective of these rulemakings is to promote the long-term sustainability of the U.S. financial system. While the worst of the financial crisis is behind us, the Commission intensively continues its critical work to fulfill our obligation to protect investors, enhance market stability, and promote capital formation. – Mary Jo White, Chair, SEC
[More…]
Social Media Week Part I – Using Social Media In Your Compliance Program
Social Media Week Part II – Sharing in the Compliance Function
Social Media Week Part III – Twitter and Innovation in Your Compliance Program
Social Media Week Part IV – Telling a Story About Honey
Social Media Week Part V – Tools and Apps for the Compliance Practitioner
Are conflicts of interest policies a violation of labor law? by Jeff Kaplan in Conflict of Interest Blog
In recent years, an unfortunate – in my view – line of decisions and reports has been issued by the U.S. National Labor Relations Board (“the NLRB”) holding that various aspects of company policies violate the National Labor Relations Act (“the Act”). For those looking to learn more about this area generally, a good place to start is with this article by Joe Murphy in a recent issue of Compliance & Ethics Professional. Of particular concern to readers of the COI Blog might be a decision handed down by the NLRB in June – in Remington Lodging & Hospitality, LLC d/b/a The Sheraton Anchorage – finding that a generic conflict of interest policy in an employer’s handbook was unlawful under the Act. The case can be found here, but – given the procedural history involved – readers may wish instead to review this summary of it published by attorneys at the Arent Fox law firm. [More….]
On Teaching Compliance by D. Daniel Sokol in the CLS Blue Sky Blog
Compliance is a growth field in both legal education and practice. Overall, whether compliance teaching is geared towards students or individuals within a company, greater care and nuance must be taken in undertaking compliance teaching and training to reflect the inter-disciplinary and proactive elements of the creation of robust and effective compliance programs. Increasingly, this means that lawyers and law professors need to incorporate insights from other disciplines in their teaching to use more case studies. [More…]
I rode my bike between Hillsdale, New York and Provincetown, Massachusetts last weekend as part of the Pan-Mass Challenge ride to support cancer research. I huge thank you to those readers of Compliance Building who donated.
If you were waiting to donate to see if I could complete the ride, my task is done. There is still time to donate. 100% of your donation goes to the Jimmy Fund.
[button link=”http://www2.pmc.org/e.asp?tid=7200&q=https://www2.pmc.org/egifts/DC0176″]Donate to the Pan-Mass Challenge[/button]
