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Course Details

Course Information
  • smart_display Format

    On-Demand

  • signal_cellular_alt Difficulty Level

  • work Practice Area

    Banking and Finance

Date & Time
  • event Date

    Tuesday, July 20, 2021

  • schedule Time

    1:00 p.m. ET./10:00 a.m. PT

  • timer Program Length

    90 minutes

Credit Information

  • This 90-minute webinar is eligible in most states for 1.5 CLE credits.

$347.00

This course is $0 with these passes:

CLE
ALL

This CLE course will discuss SEC enforcement priorities for 2021, with a particular focus on special purpose acquisition companies (SPACs), environmental, social, and governance (ESG) issues, digital currencies, COVID-19 disclosures, and PPP fraud. The panel will also discuss how the appointment of Gary Gensler and other leadership changes under the new administration might affect SEC priorities going forward.

Faculty

Michelle N. Tanney
Attorney
BakerHostetler

Ms. Tanney brings a wealth of knowledge to her securities enforcement and litigation practice. Her involvement in regulatory compliance and disclosure informs her ability to counsel clients on a broad range of issues, including securities litigation, SEC investigations, enforcement actions and evolving financial regulations. Ms. Tanney also has in-house experience, having been seconded to a multi-billion dollar global investment firm in New York.

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Teresa Goody Guillén
Partner, Co-Leader Blockchain Team
BakerHostetler

Ms. Guillén has a broad securities, litigation/investigations and corporate practice that includes representing businesses and individuals in securities enforcement and other government investigations and conducting investigations for corporate board committees and companies. She is a former litigation counsel for the SEC in its Office of the General Counsel, nationally regarded for the depth of her knowledge of the federal securities laws. Ms. Guillén also counsels on general corporate, securities and compliance issues, as well as capital raises under Regulations S, D, A+ and CF. Her experience includes emerging issues associated with blockchain, cryptocurrencies and digital assets, NFTs, decentralized autonomous organizations, web 3.0, DeFi platforms and alternative trading systems. Ms. Guillén has extensive experience in representing private and public companies, financial institutions, investment managers, boards of directors, corporate officers and others in complex financial, disclosure and corporate governance matters. She is often called upon to serve as an authority in court cases on corporate governance and fiduciary duties, and lectures at Georgetown McDonough School of Business on corporate governance, mitigating corporate risk and entrepreneurship. She also teaches "Digital Law and Policy" as an Adjunct Professor at Georgetown University, The Graduate School of Arts and Sciences.

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Description

The appointment of Gary Gensler as SEC Chairman, and other changes within SEC leadership, may alter the enforcement landscape. Counsel should be prepared for heightened scrutiny of SPAC transactions, digital currency, cybersecurity and ESG disclosures, among other matters.

On Mar. 31, 2021, the SEC's Division of Corporation Finance issued guidance indicating an increased focus by the SEC on SPAC accounting practices. On Apr. 8, 2021, SEC signaled that it would apply the same level of scrutiny to de-SPAC-related disclosures as it would to traditional IPO disclosures.

With the creation of the Climate and ESG Task Force, the Biden SEC has indicated its intention to focus on ESG-related misconduct and disclosure of climate risks in public company filings. The SEC has already found instances in which investment firms were making potentially misleading statements regarding their ESG investment processes.

The rise of bitcoin and the proliferation of new digital currencies triggered several high-profile SEC enforcement actions. Cryptocurrency will receive significant SEC attention under Chairman Gensler, who taught courses at MIT on blockchain technology and digital currencies.

The COVID-19 era, like other periods of economic crisis, has led to the mass uncovering of misconduct. Since the pandemic shut down in 2020, the Enforcement Division opened over 150 Covid-19-related inquiries. The SEC will likely continue to look for and investigate such misconduct in 2021 and beyond.

Listen as our authoritative panel discusses the areas of potential rulemaking and enforcement actions by the SEC and other agencies under the Biden administration.

Outline

  1. New SEC leadership in the Biden administration: implications for securities enforcement
  2. Rulemaking and guidance
    1. Climate change and ESG
    2. SPACs
    3. Cybersecurity
  3. Enforcement priorities
    1. SPAC acquisitions to be treated as IPOs
    2. ESG disclosures
    3. Disclosures relating to COVID-19/PPP fraud cases
    4. Cryptocurrencies
    5. Other
  4. SEC, DOJ, and CFTC: areas of shared jurisdiction

Benefits

The panel will review these and other key issues:

  • How have disclosures connected to recently de-SPAC transactions varied from traditional IPOs, and what changes are anticipated under the current administration?
  • What are the current disclosure obligations of public companies about ESG issues, and what are the potential requirements going forward?
  • How has the SEC's focus on cybersecurity changed after SolarWinds and recent ransomware attacks?
  • What types of COVID-related claims are being brought by federal enforcement agencies, and what are their respective roles?