This advanced, practice-focused seminar examines how the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) and the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) investigate, prosecute, and resolve high-profile enforcement actions. Through detailed case studies across areas such as securities fraud, FCPA violations, insider trading, market manipulation, and accounting misconduct, students will learn how enforcement actually unfolds in practice.
The course emphasizes how lawyers operate in real scenarios—responding to subpoenas, conducting internal investigations, negotiating settlements, and managing parallel civil and criminal proceedings. Students will analyze enforcement strategy from both the government and defense perspectives, focusing on decision-making under pressure, risk mitigation, and reputational management.
The seminar treats enforcement as a strategic battlefield, where legal doctrine, business realities, and regulatory power converge.
This course assumes prior study of securities regulation, criminal law, or business law.
Course Objectives
By the end of the course, students should be able to:
1. Understand how DOJ and SEC enforcement actions are initiated and conducted.
2. Analyze real-world enforcement cases across multiple legal domains.
3. Evaluate litigation and defense strategies.
4. Understand the role of internal investigations and compliance failures.
5. Assess enforcement risks for corporations and individuals.
6. Navigate parallel civil and criminal proceedings.
7. Analyze settlement negotiations and outcomes.
8. Develop practical strategies for advising clients under investigation.
9. Identify trends in enforcement priorities.
10. Apply legal principles to real-world enforcement scenarios.
