The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has reported that enforcement actions are on the rise, that the number of first-of-their-kind cases is growing, and that the investigative net is widening to include a broader range of corporate gatekeepers, from senior executives to in-house counsel, compliance personnel and outside audit firms. In this high-risk regulatory and law-enforcement climate, businesses, boards of directors, and senior officers require effective compliance programs and proactive legal counsel with experience navigating the labyrinth of federal and state securities laws and regulations.
Crowell & Moring’s Securities and Financial Fraud Investigations team has extensive experience counseling clients facing inquiries, parallel investigations, and law-enforcement actions led by the SEC, Department of Justice, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, the Commodities Futures Trading Commission, the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, the New York Department of Financial Services, the UK Financial Conduct Authority, and other agencies. We have a wealth of experience at every stage, from conducting internal investigations to representing individuals and corporations before the agencies, during the Wells process, before grand juries, and at trial. We also have broad experience serving as independent monitors, both court appointed and resulting from deferred prosecution agreements. Our practice includes former SEC Enforcement prosecutors, a member of the DOJ’s Enron Task Force, numerous other former prosecutors and enforcement attorneys from the DOJ, U.S. Attorney's Offices, and FinCEN. As skilled advocates and negotiators, we are prepared to represent clients before any agency or court, and to do so in a way that balances regulatory compliance with each client’s continuing business needs and concerns.
Services
Our lawyers are creative, flexible, hands-on, and have a comprehensive knowledge of the modern securities and financial fraud enforcement landscape. We advise clients on the full spectrum of issues related to investment, accounting, and financial reporting compliance, including:
- Accounting, disclosure, financial and mortgage fraud
- Insider trading
- Investment advisor and broker-dealer regulation
- Market manipulation
- Money laundering
- Ponzi schemes
- Public corruption
- Tax fraud
Experience
Our team includes attorneys who have led the prosecution on high-profile securities and financial fraud matters at the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Eastern District of New York, the U.S. Attorney's Office for the District of Columbia, DOJ Fraud Section as well as SEC Enforcement in both Washington, D.C. and New York, OFAC, and FinCEN. We have represented a broad range of clients, from individuals to multinational corporations, including:
- Broker-dealers
- Financial institutions
- Investment advisors and their principals
- Joint union trust fund entities
- Manufacturers
- CAOs, CFOs, CEOs and Board members