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Matthew C. Solomon

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Matthew C. Solomon has significant experience in complex and high-stakes civil and criminal matters, having served for 15 years with the U.S. Department of Justice and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission—including most recently as the SEC’s Chief Litigation Counsel.

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For more insights and analysis from Cleary lawyers on policy and regulatory developments from a legal perspective, visit What to Expect From a Second Trump Administration.

The new administration has recently taken steps to reduce or even eliminate the role of the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB) in the supervision of certain financial institutions and the enforcement of federal consumer protection statutes.  While these actions represent a significant departure from the prior administration’s approach to consumer protection, and while a less active CFPB will likely reduce the federal regulatory burden on entities that have been subject to CFPB supervision, consumer financial protection enforcement is not likely to disappear. Instead, it will likely shift to state attorneys general (AG), which had already been active, along with the CFPB, in consumer protection.  This means entities that provide products or services in the consumer finance space will need to continue to be attentive to federal consumer protection statutes (such as the Consumer Financial Protection Act) that can be enforced by states, to state consumer protection statutes, and to state AG inquiries.Continue Reading Consumer Protection Compliance Remains Crucial in Spite of CFPB Work Stoppage

The following is part of our annual publication Selected Issues for Boards of Directors in 2025. Explore all topics or download the PDF.

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Department of Justice (DOJ) both had active enforcement years in 2024. The SEC’s aggressive focus on crypto enforcement continued, resulting in the filing and continued litigation of several cases in federal courts nationwide. The DOJ announced a number of policy updates in 2024, including guidance related to voluntary disclosures and corporate enforcement, and remained active in the foreign corruption and national security spaces. Finally, both the SEC and DOJ have increased their focus on AI and new technologies, showing increasing concern about the risks associated with AI, with the DOJ issuing guidance on AI in compliance programs and the SEC bringing cases related to misleading marketing about the use of AI in investment strategies. As noted more fully below, with the incoming Trump Administration, enforcement priorities at both SEC and DOJ are expected to shift. The SEC is expected to have a renewed focus on traditional enforcement areas, such as accounting fraud, misrepresentations in securities offerings and insider trading, with significant reductions in enforcement activity related to crypto, cyber incidents and ESG issues. The DOJ is likely to continue its focus on FCPA and national security (including sanctions and export controls), while devoting increasing resources to immigration and violent crime. Additionally, the benefits of cooperation are likely to increase at both the SEC and DOJ, with the potential for reduced penalties for companies able to effectively demonstrate their cooperation and self-remediation.Continue Reading An Active Year in Enforcement, with Changes to Come

On November 22, the Securities and Exchange Commission announced its enforcement results for the 2024 fiscal year with a record $8.2 billion in financial remedies.[1]  At the same time, a few cases and sweeps comprised the vast bulk of that amount, and the number of cases brought dropped by 26%.  In a press release announcing the results, Acting Enforcement Director Sanjay Wadhwa touted the agency’s “high impact enforcement actions” and noted “stepped up efforts” by market participants to self-report their own potential wrongdoing, cooperate in SEC investigations, and remediate any shortcomings.  Chair Gary Gensler, who recently announced he will step down at the start of the next Trump presidency, described the Enforcement Division as a “steadfast cop on the beat.”  Set forth below are key highlights on enforcement trends from the past year, as well as predictions for what the next year may hold under a new administration.Continue Reading SEC FY 2024 Enforcement Results: Record Dollars But Many Fewer Cases

In the past few weeks, the Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) has announced three settled enforcement actions alleging violations of the internal controls provisions of the federal securities laws.  The cases are notable less for the SEC penalties involved—which ranged from no penalty to $400,000—but rather for the other, more dire consequences the companies experienced as a result of internal controls failures, such as financial restatements, delayed SEC filings that led to an exchange delisting, and serious employee misconduct that went unchecked.  The cases underscore the importance of establishing and maintaining effective systems of internal control over financial reporting. Continue Reading Trio of SEC Enforcement Actions Underscores Importance of Internal Controls, Including in M&A Context

The following post was originally included as part of our recently published memorandum “Selected Issues for Boards of Directors in 2024”.

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Department of Justice (DOJ) both accelerated their enforcement efforts in 2023, and seem poised to further intensify these efforts in 2024.  At the same time, the SEC disseminated new disclosure requirements across sectors, including disclosures related to cybersecurity and artificial intelligence (AI), and renewed its focus on the corporate and social aspects of environmental, social and governance (ESG) guidance.  Its Enforcement Division remained focused on litigating high-stakes cases in the digital assets space and expanded its sweep related to off-channel communications. Continue Reading 2023 Year-in-Review: Developments and Trends in White Collar Enforcement Litigation

On November 14, the Securities and Exchange Commission announced its enforcement results for the 2023 fiscal year,[1] with case numbers up from fiscal year 2022 and monetary sanctions at the second highest level in the agency’s history, though down significantly from last year’s record highs.  In a press release announcing the results, Enforcement Director Gurbir Grewal noted that the past year’s cases demonstrate how the agency “work[s] with a sense of urgency, using all the tools in our toolkit.”  This post evaluates how the SEC used its enforcement tools in the past year and surveys the enforcement highlights in key substantive areas.Continue Reading SEC Announces FY 2023 Enforcement Results with Second-Highest Penalties on Record

On September 1, 2023, U.S. District Judge Pamela K. Chen of the Eastern District of New York granted a judgment of acquittal in the latest FIFA bribery prosecution, holding that the federal honest services statute, 18 U.S.C. § 1346, does not cover foreign commercial bribery in light of recent Supreme Court precedent.Continue Reading U.S. District Court Tosses FIFA Bribery Convictions, Finding Honest Services Statute Does Not Reach Foreign Commercial Bribery

On March 1, 2023, the U.S. Department of Justice and the Securities and Exchange Commission announced insider trading charges against Terren Peizer, the CEO and Chairman of a California-based healthcare services company called Ontrak, Inc. (the “Company”) for allegedly selling Company securities while in possession of material, non-public information (“MNPI”) that one of the Company’s major customers was likely to cancel its contract. Continue Reading DOJ and SEC Charge Healthcare Executive With Insider Trading Through a Rule 10b5-1 Trading Plan, Marking DOJ’s First Such Indictment

The following post was originally included as part of our recently published memorandum “Selected Issues for Boards of Directors in 2023”.

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) and Department of Justice (DOJ) ramped up their enforcement efforts in 2022, often in highly coordinated actions, including with other regulatory agencies such as the Commodity…

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission recently announced the Division of Enforcement’s results for fiscal year 2022, the first full year for the Division under the leadership of both Chair Gary Gensler and Director of Enforcement Gurbir Grewal.

Results were up from the year before, with a record $4.2 billion in civil penalties reflecting the…