Throughout the week over at Securities Docket I highlight the most interesting columns and blog posts from around the web on the subjects of SEC enforcement and securities litigation. Here is a digest of my picks for the week ending January 13.

Ample Assistance

Lyle Roberts –The 10b-5 Daily

A few months ago, this blog noted an unusual lead plaintiff decision. A S.D.N.Y. court dismissed the lead plaintiff from a securities class action brought against Smith Barney Fund Management and Citigroup Global Markets because, after six years of litigation, it was revealed that the entity had not actually purchased the securities at issue. So what happened to the case? All is revealed in the court's most recent order, along with some new twists and turns.

When Wall Street Sins, SEC Needs to Extract Confessions: View 

BusinessWeek

The Securities and Exchange Commission last week said it will no longer allow individuals or companies, when settling civil lawsuits, to “neither admit nor deny” wrongdoing if they have been separately convicted in a parallel criminal case. At first glance, it seems the SEC is doing something highly commendable. But there is much less than meets the eye here. The SEC should make further changes to put real meaning behind its attempt at reform, which affects only a small fraction of SEC cases.

SEC Enforcement Of The FCPA – Year In Review

Mike Koehler – FCPA Professor

FCPA enforcement, it is not just about the DOJ. Granted, its sticks are less sharp than the DOJ's, but the SEC also claims a significant piece of the FCPA enforcement pie (query whether it should – but that is a subject for another day). Today's post is a Year in Review of SEC FCPA Enforcement.

DOJ and SEC Use of Deferred and Non-prosecution Agreements in 2011

Sue Reisinger – Corporate Counsel

The year 2011 is likely to be remembered as a time of sea change for how law enforcement deals with corporations. And nowhere was the change more noticeable than in the use of deferred and non-prosecution agreements.

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