Rachel Wolkinson and Blair Rinne Contribute Chapter on SEC to GIR’s Guide to Monitorships

Partner Rachel Wolkinson and Associate Blair Rinne contributed a chapter on the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) to the third edition of Global Investigations Review’s The Guide to Monitorships.

The guide, published on April 25, examines monitorships through in-depth analysis of corporate cultures, expert perspectives and common issues that arise in connection with monitorships. Wolkinson and Rinne’s chapter, entitled "The Securities and Exchange Commission," focuses on the SEC’s use of monitors, particularly the statutory authority for monitorships, historical use and analysis of prior monitors, and specific guidance issued by the U.S. Department of Justice regarding monitorships. The article examines various case studies, including WorldCom and Stryker Corporation, to illustrate the trends and guidance around corporate monitors today and into the future.

“Although the use of monitors has expanded, recent trends and US DOJ guidance demonstrate that the SEC has shifted from seeking all-encompassing roles for monitors to roles that are more tailored to remediating the problematic behaviour outlined in the charging or settlement papers,” they wrote. “Even with this narrower scope, an organisation should still carefully evaluate the benefits and costs of accepting a monitor appointment as part of the resolution of an SEC investigation. Monitor appointments are unlikely to wane in the near future and, in light of most recent US DOJ guidance, may even be used more frequently to aid the SEC’s regulatory function in a variety of contexts to protect the public from perceived recidivist corporate misconduct.”

Read the full chapter here.