Although the U.S. Supreme Court recently declined to review two separate challenges to the constitutionality of in-house proceedings before the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, it may nonetheless confront the issue soon: Many more cases are winding through the federal system, and the potential for a split among the courts of appeals is high.
By way of background, prior to 2010, the SEC could obtain monetary penalties administratively only against “registered” entities — primarily broker-dealers and investment advisers.
