Curriculum Guide · Courses

Professor Bradley Bondi

LL.M Seminar 712 (cross-listed) | 2 credit hours

Crisis often brings change. The stock market crash of 1929 prompted Congres-sional hearings that eventually produced revolutionary legislation: the Securities Act of 1933, which regulated U.S. securities offerings; and the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, which regulated securities markets and established the SEC. Like the financial meltdown 80 years ago, the current financial crisis has sparked a critique of the U.S. financial regulatory system. Having witnessed a Ponzi scheme of unprecedented magnitude and the near decimation of venerable Wall Street firms, scholars, lawmakers, regulators, and investors have questioned the appropriateness of our current regulatory framework and the role of the SEC.

The first part of the course will focus on understanding the events that prompted the 1933 Act, the 1934 Act, the Investment Company of 1940, the Investment Advisers Act of 1940, and the establishment and growth of the SEC. Perhaps not surprisingly, many of those same policy considerations are driving current discussions within the Commission, in Congress, and in the Administration. The second part of the course will examine particular aspects of securities regulation from both substantive and organizational viewpoints, including the regulation of public companies, investment companies, and investment advisors, with an emphasis on the inner workings of the SEC. We will study the current functions played by the Commission’s various divisions and offices as we explore the pros and cons of the existing regulatory architecture and the initiatives under consideration at the SEC and within Congress. The final segment of the course will focus on the future of the SEC and financial regulation in the U.S. We will review current reform proposals, including the so-called “Treasury Blue Print,” and other ideas for reorganizing the system. We will have speakers including present and former senior officials from the SEC and the financial industry.

This course is open to both JD and LLM students and is recommended for students who wish to gain a deeper understanding of the SEC or may be considering an externship with the Commission.

Prerequisite: Prior or concurrent enrollment in Securities Regulation.