SEC: Paul Carey Dies After Bout With Cancer

The Securities and Exchange Commission will still be able to conduct business even though one of its members has died, leaving only two members on the five-member commission.

Paul R. Carey, a member of the SEC and former aide to President Bill Clinton, died Thursday at Memorial Sloan-Kettering Center in New York City after a long battle with endocrine cancer.

The death of Carey, who was only 38, leaves just two members on the SEC -- acting chairwoman Laura S. Unger and commissioner Isaac C. Hunt Jr. An SEC spokesperson said yesterday that the SEC's rules provide for a two-person quorum if there are only two members of the commission. However, Unger is a Republican and Hunt is a Democrat. President George Bush has nominated Harvey Pitt, a partner at Fried, Frank, Harris, Shriver & Jacobson to replace Unger as chairman, but his nomination is still pending in the Senate.

Carey was the son of former New York Gov. Hugh L. Carey. He served as a special assistant to Clinton for legislative affairs. Clinton appointed him to the SEC, where he has served for the past four years. During that time, he focused on, among other things, proposals to allow the investment of Social Security money in the financial markets and to improve mutual fund management and advertising practices. His term was set to expire in June 2002.