Stephen L. Cohen
White Collar Defense and Investigations
Crisis Management and Strategic Response
Government Strategies
Leveraging his extensive experience at the SEC, Steve has a proven track record for guiding his clients through their most difficult matters and achieving exceptional results. He is a leading advisor to the financial industry and has represented numerous public companies and their boards, Audit Committees, Special Committees, or executives, as well as SEC registrants, in internal investigations and matters involving the SEC, U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB), Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), state attorneys general, and securities regulators.
Steve is ranked by Chambers USA for Nationwide Securities: Regulation: Enforcement (2020–2024), where he is lauded for his “incredible expertise” and is described as a “sharp and powerful lawyer who is very bright, methodical and detail-orientated” (2023). Steve leads Sidley’s global Securities Enforcement and Regulatory practice, which was named the “Law Firm of the Year” for Litigation – Regulatory Enforcement (SEC, Telecom, Energy) in 2023 and 2021 and for Securities Regulation in 2020 and 2017 by U.S. News – Best Lawyers, and received the 2019 Chambers USA Award for Financial Services Regulation.
Before joining Sidley, Steve spent 12 years at the SEC, most recently serving as Associate Director in the Enforcement Division where he oversaw domestic and international enforcement investigations involving accounting and disclosure fraud, auditor misconduct, the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), insider trading, registered and unregistered securities offerings, market abuses, broker-dealers, investment advisers, exchanges, public company and accounting issues, and other regulated entities. In addition, Steve worked closely with and advised federal regulatory and law enforcement agencies from including investigative coordination and providing advice and training on enforcement and investigations issues to regulators and law enforcement agencies around the world. As Senior Advisor to then SEC Chairman Mary Schapiro, Steve also led the SEC’s work in relation to the whistleblower provisions in Dodd-Frank and subsequent rulemaking, oversaw the rulemaking establishing a Consolidated Audit Trail, and he directed the creation of the agency’s Tips, Complaints and Referrals system.
Steve won the SEC’s Distinguished Service Award in 2016, the agency’s highest honor, for his skill in managing one of the division’s most productive groups, bringing many of the commission’s most significant actions, significantly expanding the SEC’s ability to protect investors and driving initiatives that improved the division’s performance. The Society of Corporate Compliance and Ethics presented Steve with its 2017 International Compliance & Ethics award, recognizing him for his significant contributions to the compliance and ethics profession.
经验
- 代理事宜
- 会员资格与主要活动
Recent representative matters include:
Public Companies and Auditors
- HP Inc. in disclosure-related SEC settlement.
- Herbalife Nutrition in FCPA investigation resulting in SEC settlement and DOJ deferred prosecution agreement, and a disclosure-related SEC matter.
- BorgWarner, Inc. in restatement-related SEC settlement.
- MiMedx in SEC and DOJ investigations, including an SEC settlement and DOJ declination.
- Large multinational company in internal investigation and investigations by SEC and DOJ involving the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.
- Two declinations for Fortune 100 companies in SEC accounting and disclosure investigation.
- Declination for public company CFO in SEC fraud investigation.
- Multiple big four audit firms and partners, as well as international member firms, in SEC and PCAOB investigations.
- Multiple public company boards of directors on governance, compliance, and regulatory issues.
SEC-Registered Firms
- Declination for a large Wall Street financial institution in SEC investigation involving trading-related issues.
- Independent Compliance Consultant for large, international financial services firm related to SEC Order.
- Principal of substantial hedge fund manager in an SEC investigation resulting in no enforcement action.
- Rialto Capital Management in SEC settlement.
- Registered investment adviser in an SEC investigation resulting in closure with no enforcement action.
- Multiple investment advisers in SEC’s revenue sharing and mutual fund share class disclosure.
- Multiple investment advisers in SEC exams.
- Major bank in conjunction with internal investigation and FINRA inquiry involving mortgage-backed securities trading.
- Major financial institution in conjunction with SEC investigation involving international private fund, which was closed without enforcement action.
- Credit rating agency in SEC investigation and subsequent litigation.
Cybersecurity and Cryptocurrency
- Declination for public company CFO in cybersecurity, SEC investigation.
- Large financial institution in internal investigation involving cybersecurity incident.
- Large public investment bank in internal investigation and regulatory guidance related to cyber breach.
- Investment adviser in cyber-related SEC examination.
- Multiple individuals in SEC initial coin offering investigation.
- Adjunct Professor, University of Miami School of Law (teaching class on Investigations)
- Member, Editorial Board, Journal of Financial Compliance.
- Member, Board of Advisors, SEC Historical Society.
- Member, Leadership Council, Miriam’s Kitchen.
相关业务能力
- 证券执法及监管
- 白领犯罪辩护及调查
- 危机管理与战略应对
- 政府政策
- 会计和职业责任
- 反洗钱
- 大数据、物联网和人工智能
- 经纪交易商
- 商业罪案合规咨询
- 国会调查
- 网络安全、网络犯罪和数据泄露
- 《多德-弗兰克法案》
- 美国《海外反腐败法》/反贿赂
- 金融信息与私隐法
- 金融机构诉讼
- 财务报告和披露
- 金融服务立法
- 对冲基金、私募和金融机构诉讼
- 对冲基金
- 内幕交易
- 内部调查
- 投资顾问和互惠基金
- 律师事务所权益
- 并购诉讼
- 国土安全
- 私人证券诉讼
- 金融零售业务
- 美国证券法信息披露
- 第16章 报告和法律责任
- 证券、互惠基金和商品活动
- 高级职员和董事证券交易
- 出庭辩护
- 行政法上诉
- 金融、证券和会计师责任上诉
- 环球金融服务
- 上市公司
- 证券执法
- Blockchain
- 金融科技
- 投资顾问执法
- 投资顾问
- 私人房地产基金
- 证券监管咨询与合规
- Banks and Financial Institutions Crisis Management and Strategic Response
- Pre-Commercial Life Sciences Companies
- 衍生金融工具
- 董事会危机管理与战略应对
- 企业风险管理及关键事项
- Market Structure and Broker-Dealer Operations
- Global Life Sciences Enforcement
- 国家及经济安全
新闻与观点
证书
执业资格及证书
- U.S. Court of Appeals, 5th Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals, D.C. Circuit
- U.S. District Court, S.D. of Florida
- 美国华府哥伦比亚特区
- Florida
- Massachusetts
学历和教育
- University of Miami School of Law, 法学博士, 1997 (magna cum laude, University of Miami Law Review)
- Boston University, 文学学士, 1993 (cum laude)
书记员
- Ursula Ungaro, U.S. District Court, S.D. of Florida (1997 - 1998)