SEC enforcement against public companies – A recap of 2023
2023 was an active year in public company enforcement by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, with several first-of-their-kind actions. The SEC looked past traditional financial performance issues and brought disclosure cases involving issues such as cybersecurity, ESG and human capital. Below we share five takeaways as we look toward public company enforcement in 2024. […]
Robert A. Cohen is a Partner, and Fuad Rana is Counsel at Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP. This post is based on a Davis Polk memorandum by Mr. Cohen, Mr. Rana, John B. Meade, Ning Chiu, Martine M. Beamon, and Stefani Johnson Myrick.
2023 was an active year in public company enforcement by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, with several first-of-their-kind actions. The SEC looked past traditional financial performance issues and brought disclosure cases involving issues such as cybersecurity, ESG and human capital. Below we share five takeaways as we look toward public company enforcement in 2024.
In 2023, the SEC brought several high-profile enforcement cases involving issues other than financial performance, including claims against public company executives who did not have responsibility for financial reporting. The SEC also asserted aggressive claims involving internal controls requirements and displayed its willingness to litigate, while also messaging the benefits of cooperation. We fully expect the SEC to continue its aggressive approach to issuer disclosure and accounting as we move into the final year of the current administration.
