Research Center Events
Ross Roundtable Discusses Securities Litigation Post-Dodd-Frank
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Some 50 academics, practitioners and policymakers gathered at NYU Stern in March for a roundtable discussion on securities litigation post-Dodd-Frank, co-hosted by Stern’s Vincent C. Ross Institute of Accounting and NERA Economic Consulting. Industry experts discussed recent developments in shareholder litigation and regulatory enforcement, the impact of regulatory reform and current academic research.
George Canellos, director, New York Office, US Securities and Exchange Commission, on changes in SEC in the past decade: The WorldCom case ruling “had everything to do with compensating equity holders who had been defrauded…$750 million went to equity holders who would otherwise have gotten nothing…Although the law has been clear that the purpose of penalties is to punish…compensation of victims is not the primary governing factor, but it’s clear that it is sometimes a factor.”
James Overdahl, vice president, NERA Economic Consulting: Within the SEC, “economists are playing a much more significant role in the litigation process over the past few years…and they’ve been ramping up their hiring of economists and other individuals with quantitative skills.”
Mark Kornfeld, partner, Baker and Hostetler LLP: “Madoff is probably one of the precipitators of Dodd-Frank. An interesting question is what would have changed if Dodd-Frank had been in existence?”
John Montgomery, senior vice president, NERA Economic Consulting: “Suing Chinese companies for securities fraud has become an important sub-industry.”
Michele Rose, partner, Latham and Watkins LLP: “A majority of [securities litigation cases against Chinese companies] are against companies that went public through a reverse merger.”
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George Canellos, director, New York Office, US Securities and Exchange Commission, on changes in SEC in the past decade: The WorldCom case ruling “had everything to do with compensating equity holders who had been defrauded…$750 million went to equity holders who would otherwise have gotten nothing…Although the law has been clear that the purpose of penalties is to punish…compensation of victims is not the primary governing factor, but it’s clear that it is sometimes a factor.”
James Overdahl, vice president, NERA Economic Consulting: Within the SEC, “economists are playing a much more significant role in the litigation process over the past few years…and they’ve been ramping up their hiring of economists and other individuals with quantitative skills.”
Mark Kornfeld, partner, Baker and Hostetler LLP: “Madoff is probably one of the precipitators of Dodd-Frank. An interesting question is what would have changed if Dodd-Frank had been in existence?”
John Montgomery, senior vice president, NERA Economic Consulting: “Suing Chinese companies for securities fraud has become an important sub-industry.”
Michele Rose, partner, Latham and Watkins LLP: “A majority of [securities litigation cases against Chinese companies] are against companies that went public through a reverse merger.”