Syndicate Legal & Financial

BROKER DEALER LEGAL & COMPLIANCE:​

 

Broker-dealers and financial services companies face a rising tide of legislative, regulatory, and technology-related challenges. Our highly experienced broker-dealer lawyers help clients address the full range of issues applicable to broker-dealers. ​

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We represent U.S. and foreign-based clients in all aspects of regulatory, compliance, and market structure matters, counseling, enforcement defense, arbitration and litigation, and corporate and commercial transactions in the securities markets. 

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Our knowledge of technology and its role in the securities markets is a distinguishing feature of Syndicate. We counsel clients on issues involving electronic communication networks (ECN), electronic trading platforms and portals, and alternative trading systems (ATS). We also provide counsel with respect to systems and technology issues, including risk management, cyberfraud security, electronic records management, and production.

Our services include the following (but are not limited to):

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• Corporate and commercial transactions and regulatory approvals, including consortium and joint-venture arrangements; formation, acquisition, restructuring and membership applications of broker-dealers; changes in ownership, operations and control; new business activities; the development and financing of order management, trading, execution and clearing platforms; conducting business in foreign jurisdictions and cross-border transactions; intellectual property and licensing transactions; foreign broker-dealer activities in the United States; and clearing and other vendor agreements.

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• Trade execution, market making and research, including commissions, markups, markdowns and commission sharing; trading restrictions involving Regulation M, Regulation SHO, Regulation S, Rule 144 and Rule 144A; trade and account reporting, surveillance and fraud detection; ethical walls, information barriers and insider trading; and soft dollars.

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• Regulatory counseling, including implementation of Dodd Frank, interpretation of rules and best practices with respect to SEC and self-regulatory organization rules; risk management; development of supervisory and employee policies, procedures and certifications; advertising, sales materials and sales practices requirements; review and approval of complex and new products; record keeping and reporting; net capital issues; Anti-Money Laundering (AML), Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), and U.K. Anti-Bribery Law requirements; registration exemptions including "finders" issues; confidential information; no-action letters and interpretive advice; and social media.

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• Examinations and enforcement defense, including advice and assistance in all phases of regulatory inquiries, sweeps, examinations, internal investigations, law-enforcement investigations, Wells notices, enforcement actions and criminal prosecution; and responses to requests for information, including document production and on-the-record interviews from the SEC, FINRA, and state and foreign regulatory authorities, law enforcement agencies, and various exchanges.

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• Litigation and arbitration, including representation of financial services firms in state and federal courts, FINRA and private arbitration forums in industry, employee, and customer disputes.

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