Tag Archives: Emily Roberts

SEC Files Two More Actions Alleging Employee Severance Agreements Violated Whistleblower Protections

by Sidney Bashago, Angela T. Burgess, Adam Kaminsky, Emily Roberts, Veronica M. Wissel, Martine M. Beamon, Jennifer S. Conway, Kyoko Takahashi Lin, and Travis S. Triano

From top left to right: Sidney Bashago, Angela T. Burgess, Adam Kaminsky, Emily Roberts, and Veronica M. Wissel From bottom left to right: Martine M. Beamon, Jennifer S. Conway, Kyoko Takahashi Lin, and Travis S. Triano. (Photos courtesy of Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP)

The SEC has announced settlement of enforcement actions against two companies stemming from each company’s use of separation agreements that allegedly violated Dodd-Frank whistleblower protection rules. The settled enforcement actions demonstrate that whistleblower protection remains a priority for the SEC’s Enforcement Division.

Continue reading →

California Enacts Law Requiring Public Company Boards to Include Members of Underrepresented Communities

by Alan F. Denenberg, Joseph A. Hall, Emily Roberts, Byron B. Rooney, Stephen Salmon, Ning Chiu, Betty Moy Huber, and Sarah Kirk

On September 30, 2020, California Governor Gavin Newsom signed Assembly Bill 979, which will require each NYSE and Nasdaq-listed public company with its principal executive offices in California to have at least one director from an “underrepresented community” on its board by December 31, 2021. On December 31, 2022, the minimum will be:

  • three directors from underrepresented communities, if the company has nine or more directors,
  • two directors from underrepresented communities, if the company has between five and eight directors, and
  • one director from an underrepresented community, if the company has four or fewer directors.

Continue reading →