On a quiet August evening when most of Wall Street and corporate America was departing for vacation, the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC) new Director of Enforcement, Robert Khuzami,1 gave a speech before the New York City Bar where he announced what is perhaps the most radical reorganization of the enforcement program since the creation of the Enforcement Division in the mid-70s. Based upon a top to bottom review of the program during his first 100 days, Mr. Khuzami described a series of initiatives to bring cases faster, with greater impact and, most importantly, to secure litigation victories at trial.
To achieve these goals, the SEC will incorporate some of the key strategies utilized by U.S. Attorney’s Offices in investigating and prosecuting criminal cases, including: the creation of specialized units, flattening the management structure by eliminating an entire supervisory level, delegating the authority to issue formal orders conferring subpoena authority to field supervisors; creating an Office of Market Intelligence; hiring more trial attorneys to build a credible trial threat; and pursuing policies to foster and incentivize individuals and whistleblowers to come forward and cooperate with investigations.
