Block.

November 03, 2005 | Law.com

After serving 25 years in Congress, Rep. Michael Oxley, chairman of the powerful House Financial Services Committee and an Ohio Republican, said Tuesday that he will not seek re-election in 2006. Oxley and Sen. Paul Sarbanes wrote 2002's landmark Sarbanes-Oxley Act. Oxley also played an influential role in the passage of financial services modernization legislation. His retirement plans will touch off a race among several prominent House lawmakers for the committee chairmanship.

By Donna Block

3 minute read

December 26, 2006 | Law.com

U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia Judge James Robertson is presiding over a brash legal attempt to eliminate the 2002 Sarbanes-Oxley corporate accountability law, and he pledged last week to rule "as soon as I can." Robertson heard arguments Dec. 21 on the constitutionality of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board. Although operation of the board is a narrow portion of the law, SOX has no severability clause, so if the PCAOB provisions were struck, SOX as a whole could fall.

By Donna Block

3 minute read

March 13, 2006 | Law.com

With the 2006 hurricane season fast-approaching, Maryland lawmakers are worried they could be setting up their constituents for huge clean-up costs and rate increases if they approve the $11.5 billion acquisition of Constellation Energy Group, the state's primary utility, by Florida Power & Light. The deal is the first major merger announced since the repeal of the Public Utility Holding Company Act. Its review is expected to set precedents for what is acceptable for consolidating companies.

By Donna Block

6 minute read

November 10, 2004 | Law.com

The Securities and Exchange Commission warned the nation's stock markets Tuesday that they may lose the right to regulate themselves without major improvements in governance. Voting unanimously, the five SEC commissioners agreed to publish a so-called concept release, soliciting comment on whether the government should retain the self-regulation model or replace it with a new system, such as direct federal oversight.

By Donna Block

4 minute read

January 24, 2007 | Law.com

New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg, Sen. Charles Schumer and Gov. Eliot Spitzer warned Monday that the Big Apple will lose its status as the world's financial capital within a decade if the U.S. doesn't change its accounting, legal and regulatory structure. The three officials unveiled a report that said the role will shift to rivals like London and Tokyo without reforms. The report's suggested areas of change include SOX, immigration policy and application of international accounting standards.

By Donna Block

3 minute read

November 07, 2003 | Law.com

John Reed proposed to revamp the New York Stock Exchange's governance structure on Wednesday but he left the day-to-day operations of the world's largest stock market largely intact. While acknowledging that there is room to criticize the exchange, the interim chairman said self-regulation is something the NYSE does "superbly well," adding that he prefers to keep such functions in-house.

By Donna Block

4 minute read

November 10, 2005 | Law.com

A small group of New York Stock Exchange members filed a motion in New York Supreme Court on Tuesday seeking a preliminary injunction to postpone the exchange's member vote on its proposed deal to buy electronic trading company Archipelago Holdings. The dissenting members want a new valuation for the deal and for NYSE chief executive John Thain to recuse himself from all negotiations.

By Donna Block

3 minute read

December 08, 2005 | Corporate Counsel

On Tuesday, the New York Stock Exchange's 1,366 owners voted to trade in their history and embark on a new era. The overwhelming vote -- 90 percent of members cast a ballot -- to purchase electronic upstart Archipelago Holdings Inc. transforms the world's largest stock market from a nonprofit public utility into the NYSE Group Inc., a for-profit, publicly traded company. The deal brings new trading technologies to the NYSE, but the future of the floor remains one of the biggest unanswered questions.

By Donna Block

4 minute read

September 25, 2006 | Law.com

House Financial Services Committee Chairman Michael Oxley said Sept. 19 that the much-maligned Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 has been "implemented overzealously," but insisted there should be no rewrite of the legislation he co-authored four years ago. The Ohio Republican, who is retiring at the end of the year, said at a committee hearing last week that he believes that, overall, SOX "has been a success." But there's some disagreement from others, including SEC Chairman Christopher Cox.

By Donna Block

4 minute read

December 01, 2006 | Corporate Counsel

The U.S. has lost its competitive edge because the regulatory environment is driving businesses to overseas exchanges and private sources to raise money, a panel of entrepreneurs and academics, endorsed by Treasury Secretary Henry Paulson, said in a report to the White House released Thursday. The report's recommendations include revising SOX; pursuing criminal cases against corporations in only exceptional circumstances; and allowing some shareholders to vote on so-called poison pills.

By Donna Block

4 minute read