A guest post from Arnall Golden Gregory LLP attorneys Cory Kirchert and Adriaen Morse. Previously both Kirchert and Morse were Senior Counsel in the SEC’s Enforcement Division.
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Introduction
The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) recently filed a case alleging violations of the anti-bribery provisions of U.S. securities laws that raises more questions than it answers. As most practitioners in this area know, press releases (or “litigation releases”) that accompany the announcement of new enforcement cases often discuss a company’s cooperation, in particular when the case came to the SEC’s attention via company self-disclosure or when the SEC wishes to signal that the company’s cooperation contributed to a low penalty or no penalty.
