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Andrew CeresneyCo-Director of the Securities and Exchange Commission's Office of Compliance
Country:
 USA |
Content:
- Andrew Ceresney's Path to the SEC
- Assistant U.S. Attorney
- Debevoise & Plimpton LLP
- Ideas to Enhance Corporate Compliance
- - Are they reporting to the board of directors?
Andrew Ceresney's Path to the SEC
Early Legal CareerAndrew Ceresney received his undergraduate degree from Columbia College and his law degree from Yale Law School. He served as a judicial clerk to the Honorable Michael Mukasey, former Chief Judge of the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York, from 1996 to 1997. From 1997 to 1998, Ceresney clerked for the Honorable Dennis Jacobs, Chief Judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.
Assistant U.S. Attorney
Ceresney served as an Assistant U.S. Attorney in the Office of the United States Attorney for the Southern District of New York. He was a Deputy Chief Appellate Prosecutor, a member of the Securities and Commodities Fraud Task Force, and a member of the Major Crimes Unit. As a prosecutor, Ceresney led numerous complex criminal investigations involving white-collar defendants. He also tried and argued complex white-collar criminal appeals, including issues related to securities fraud, mail fraud, and money laundering.
Debevoise & Plimpton LLP
Prior to joining the SEC, Ceresney was a partner in the law firm Debevoise & Plimpton LLP, where he was the Co-Chair of the White Collar Group. His practice focused on representing corporate and individual defendants, again primarily in white-collar matters. Ceresney handled criminal prosecutions, SEC investigations, complex civil litigation, and internal corporate investigations.
Ideas to Enhance Corporate Compliance
Speaking at the 2014 Compliance Week conference, Ceresney proposed several ideas to improve corporate compliance functions. He suggested a simple "compliance dashboard" to assess a company's handling of critical compliance issues. The checklist would ask questions such as:
- Are legal and compliance present at and actively participate in key meetings?
- Are the chief legal officer and chief compliance officer reporting directly to the CEO?
- Are they reporting to the board of directors?
- Are compliance and legal seen as real and valued business partners?Ceresney noted that companies often falter in these areas, leading to serious regulatory problems. He emphasized the importance of seeking assistance from the SEC early in investigations and stressed that there was nothing to fear if individuals were not knowingly complicit in wrongdoing.
