Karen Seymour, Sharon Nelles, Sharon Cohen Levin, Steve Peikin, Nicole Friedlander and Colin Lloyd to Speak at SIFMA’s C&L Seminar

Karen Seymour, Sharon Nelles, Sharon Cohen Levin, Steve Peikin, Nicole Friedlander and Colin Lloyd will speak at SIFMA’s Compliance & Legal Annual Seminar, joining dozens of experts and regulators in the financial services industry for four days of discussion and events. The conference, which will take place from March 20-23 in Orlando, Florida, will explore topics and trends in banking, capital markets, regulatory enforcement, civil litigation, ethics and DEI. S&C is pleased to be a sponsor of the event.

To learn more about the conference and to register, click here.

March 21: Litigate or Settle? Current Considerations in Handling Enforcement Matters Against Firms and Individuals

, a partner in S&C’s Litigation Group, a former Executive Vice President and General Counsel of Goldman Sachs, and a former Chief of the Criminal Division for the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, will join the “Litigate or Settle” panel. Topics will include litigating while maintain a constructive relationship with the government, considerations when taking the government to trial, and managing media and reputational issues.

, the Managing Partner of S&C’s Litigation Group, will join the “Civil Litigation Update” panel. Topics will include the intersection of regulatory activity and litigation, evolving trends in ESG and diversity-driven litigation, cryptocurrency litigation risks, SPACs and appellate court decisions after Cyan.

, a partner in S&C’s Litigation Group and a former head of the  Money Laundering and Asset Forfeiture Unit in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, will join the panel on “Evolving Cannabis Regulations and Risk.” Topics will include a financial markets overview of the cannabis industry, the interplay of rules, laws and regulations for cannabis activity, and assessing and mitigating risk in this sphere.

, the head of S&C’s Securities and Commodities Investigations & Enforcement Practice and former Co-Director of the SEC’s Enforcement Division, will join the panel, “Investment Banking and Capital Markets Enforcement Issues and Developments.” The panel will discuss enforcement issues around personal devices, SARs, trading and meme stocks, as well as lessons arising from the collapse of Archegos.

is a partner in S&C’s Criminal Defense and Investigations Group, where she is co-head of Cybersecurity, and a former Chief of the Complex Frauds and Cybercrime Unit in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York. She will join the panel on “Cyber Issues: Traps For The Unwary.” Topics will include SEC amendments regarding cybersecurity risk management, strategy, governance, and incident disclosure; SEC and other cyber enforcement trends; cyber risk and planning in light of Russia’s inversion of Ukraine; and managing cyber crisis incidents including ransomware attacks.

, a partner in S&C’s Commodities, Futures and Derivatives and Capital Markets Groups, will join the panel, “Security Based Swap Dealers.” The panel will include a high-level overview of SEC security based swap dealer (SBSD) framework, post SBSD registration go-live issues, cross border, trade reporting and SEC re-proposed rules.

Sullivan & Cromwell’s Securities Litigation Group has long been recognized as a premier practice, as evidenced by its Band 1 rating by Chambers USA Nationwide for more than a decade. Our lawyers have shaped the evolution of U.S. banking and securities law through precedent-setting results and are respected by courts, regulators and adversaries alike. Partners in the group routinely participate in and lead industry events, contribute to influential industry publications, and produce insightful industry resources.

S&C’s Criminal Defense & Investigation Practice

Sullivan & Cromwell’s Criminal Defense & Investigations Group resolves issues on the cutting edge of enforcement and regulatory activity, drawing from the experience of more than a dozen former federal and state prosecutors in the group. Members of the group regularly appear before all major enforcement agencies and have extensive experience handling multiagency investigations and cross-border enforcement actions involving white collar, criminal defense and regulatory issues.

S&C’s Securities & Commodities Investigation & Enforcement Practice

Led by leading former regulators, Sullivan & Cromwell’s Securities & Commodities Investigation & Enforcement Group offers clients lawyers with a deep understanding of markets and complex trading and financial products. They regularly represent clients in investigations and enforcement actions by the SEC, the CFTC, FINRA and the National Futures Associations and other regulators and self-regulatory organizations.

S&C’s Economic Sanctions and Financial Crime Practice

Sullivan & Cromwell’s Economic Sanctions & Financial Crime Group assists financial institutions in navigating AML and economic sanctions program challenges. Our lawyers bring deep regulatory knowledge, investigatory skills, and practical experience and creativity to this area of tremendous complexity and constant change.

S&C’s Cybersecurity Practice

S&C’s Cybersecurity Practice advises companies on cybersecurity preparedness, incident response, post-breach investigation, complex litigation, related corporate governance issues and data privacy matters, including U.S. and international privacy laws, in relation to cutting-edge matters, including those involving national security, theft of confidential and proprietary information, unauthorized access to personal data, loss of funds and business disruption. The Firm acts as outside cybersecurity counsel to a range of global corporations, including technology companies, financial institutions and manufacturers.

S&C’s Commodities, Futures and Derivatives Practice

S&C’s Commodities, Futures and Derivatives Group advises clients on the full range of legal issues that arise in connection with structuring, offering and trading commodities and derivatives. The Firm assists clients with transactional, advisory, litigation and enforcement matters relating to these products and advises on the development of new products, the structuring and implementation of complex transactions, and the obtaining of necessary regulatory approvals and relief.

Recent publications and podcasts

• Securities Enforcement and Litigation Update
• ESG Trends and Hot Topics
• Memo: Alpine Securities Corporation v. Securities and Exchange Commission
• S&C Critical Insights Podcast – Developing a Robust Multi-National Compliance Program
• S&C Critical Insights  Podcast – Implications of the Anti-Money Laundering Act of 2020’s Whistleblower Provision
• S&C Publication: SEC Proposes Private Fund Cybersecurity Rules
• S&C Publication: SEC Proposes Rules Relating to Security-Based Swaps

Learn more about our partners

Karen Patton Seymour

Karen Patton Seymour has a multidisciplinary practice focusing on corporate governance, crisis management, complex commercial litigation, white-collar criminal defense and internal investigations. She has represented corporations and individuals in state and federal investigations and proceedings involving allegations of securities fraud and insider trading, and FCPA, anti-money laundering, OFAC sanctions, and criminal antitrust violations.

Karen rejoined the Firm from Goldman Sachs, where she served as Executive Vice President and General Counsel and was a member of the Management Committee. Karen served for eight years as a prosecutor in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, including two years as Chief of the Criminal Division.

Sharon Nelles

Sharon Nelles, Managing Partner of the Firm’s Litigation Group, represents global companies and financial institutions and their boards in every aspect of critical company matters that implicate not only civil litigation, but also related regulatory, congressional and criminal investigations and enforcement actions.

Sharon has represented major financial institutions in managing the fallout of the subprime mortgage crisis, tried cases in state and federal courts, and represented prominent firms and individuals in proceedings before the Department of Justice, the United States Congress, the Securities and Exchange Commission, the Federal Trade Commission, HUD, the Federal Reserve Bank of New York and several state attorneys general.

Sharon Cohen Levin

Sharon Cohen Levin is a leading expert in anti-money laundering, Bank Secrecy Act, economic sanctions and asset forfeiture matters. She represents a diverse group of clients, including financial institutions, multinational companies, and individuals in connection with criminal, regulatory, and civil enforcement actions. Her practice focuses on white-collar and regulatory enforcement defense, internal investigations, and compliance counseling.

Sharon is a former federal prosecutor and led the Money Laundering and Asset Forfeiture Unit in the U.S. Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York for two decades. Her track record of success inspired Forbes to call her “The Babe Ruth of Forfeiture.”

Steve Peikin

Steve Peikin leads Sullivan & Cromwell’s Securities & Commodities Investigations & Enforcement Practice. Steve brings decades of experience at the most senior levels of government, including as Co-Director of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission’s Division of Enforcement and Chief of the Securities and Commodities Fraud Task Force for the U.S. Attorney’s Office in the Southern District of New York. He represents clients in a wide range of regulatory enforcement investigations, white-collar criminal matters, and internal investigations, with particular expertise in matters involving the federal securities and commodities laws.

Nicole Friedlander

Nicole Friedlander is a partner in Sullivan & Cromwell’s Criminal Defense and Investigations Group and co-head of its Cybersecurity Practice. Ms. Friedlander represents clients in complex internal investigations, regulatory enforcement proceedings and criminal matters involving every aspect of white-collar crime, including fraud, FCPA, insider trading, theft of trade secrets, money laundering and tax matters. She advises major corporations and Boards of Directors in cybersecurity planning and incident response.

Colin D. Lloyd

Colin Lloyd is a partner in the S&C’s Commodities, Futures and Derivatives and Capital Markets Groups. He focuses on advising clients on a broad range of securities and derivatives regulatory, enforcement, transactional, and legislative matters. His clients include U.S. and non-U.S. broker-dealers, swap dealers, banks, exchanges, electronic trading platforms, clearinghouses, private equity funds, investment managers, sovereigns, and derivatives end users. He regularly represents clients before various federal regulatory agencies, including the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, as well as other federal regulatory agencies and self-regulatory organizations.