Boston-based Kirkpatrick & Lockhart LLP hired Derek M. Meisner as of counsel in its securities enforcement group.
Meisner, who started with the law firm in its Boston office July 26, was most recently the branch chief of the Securities and Exchange Commission's enforcement division in Washington, D.C. Meisner will work on regulatory issues affecting the financial industry, including enforcement related to the municipal bond market, he said in an interview last week. He said that given the potential for growth in the bond industry, that market is "always ripe for conduct that is unbecoming."
To that end, Meisner will represent clients in enforcement investigations conducted by the SEC, National Association of Securities Dealers, and state securities regulators; litigate securities cases; conduct internal corporate investigations, and advise clients on related corporate governance and compliance issues, according to a prepared statement from Kirkpatrick & Lockhart.
Meisner said that many of the cases that are settled with regulators are settled because industry officials cannot afford to risk the consequences brought on by inquiries from regulators. He added that it was "much easier to jump to the defense side" because he has much experience in enforcement. In addition, there is a "strong demand for lawyers with knowledge of the [SEC]. It helps to defend clients when responding," he said.
At the SEC, Meisner conducted and supervised investigations relating to corporate financial reporting, broker-dealer and investment adviser practices, market manipulation, hedge fund trading, offerings of unregistered securities, and insider trading, according to the firm's statement. He is a past recipient of the SEC's director's award and the chairman's award for excellence in recognition of his contributions to the agency's enforcement program, the statement said.
Mark Haddad, administrative partner of Kirkpatrick & Lockhart's Boston office, said Meisner's "enforcement and securities litigation experience, as well as his knowledge of corporate governance and compliance issues, lends valuable insight to our clients, and strengthens the firm's capabilities to serve in those crucial areas."
Before leaving the SEC on July 2 after five years, Meisner reported to assistant director Robert Kaplan. Prior to that he reported for several years to Russell Ryan, former assistant director who left the commission about six weeks earlier for a position at King & Spalding LLP.
