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FindLaw Financial Crisis Resources and Coverage
Legal Profile of Financial Agencies
Securities & Exchange Commission
- Created by the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, following the Securities Act of 1933.
- Created in response to the great stock market crash of 1929, widely seen as resulting from systemic risks created by unregulated trading in securities. Its purpose was to restore investor confidence in capital markets by providing investors and the markets with reliable information and clear rules of honest dealing.
- Consists of 5 presidentially-appointed Commissioners, with staggered five-year terms. One of Commissioners is designated by the President as Chairman, currently Christopher Cox.
Functions
- Interpret federal securities laws
- Issue new rules and amend existing rules
- Oversee the inspection of securities firms, brokers, investment advisers, and ratings agencies
- Oversee private regulatory organizations in the securities, accounting, and auditing fields
- Coordinate US securities regulation with federal, state, and foreign authorities
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Legal News
Breaking Documents
- Text of the Proposed Auto Bailout Bill
- Ford Motor Co.'s Business Plan Submitted to Senate Banking Committee
- Term Sheet of U.S. Treasury’s $40 Billion Purchase of AIG Stocks and Warrants under the EESA
- First Tranche Report to Congress on Allocation of EESA funds
- Emergency Economic Stabilization Act of 2008
- Countrywide Agrees to Create Assistance Programs for Troubled or Delinquent Homeowners
- SEC Order Halting Short Selling in Financial Stocks
- SEC Order Requiring Institutional Money Managers to Report New Short Sales
- SEC Order Easing Restrictions on Issuers to Re-Purchase Their Securities
- Application for Ch. 11 Bankruptcy Protection by Lehman Bros. Holdings, Inc.
Agency Profiles
FindLaw's look at the agencies overseeing the current financial crisis.
Federal Reserve
• Created by Congress in 1913 through the Federal Reserve Act.• Chairman: Ben Bernanke
• Functions: Conduct US monetary policy, supervise and regulate the US banking system, maintain stability of the financial system and contain systemic risks
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Department of
the Treasury
• Established by the first congress of the United States convened in 1789.• Secretary: Henry Paulson
• Functions: Manage federal finances, ennforce federal finance and tax laws, manage government accounts and the public debt
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Securities Exchange Committee
• Created by the Securities Exchange Act of 1934• Chairman: Christopher Cox
• Functions: Interpret federal securities laws, issue new rules and amend existing rules, oversee the inspection of securities firms
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Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation
• Created by Congress in 1933• Chairman: Sheila C. Bair
• Functions: Insure all deposits at insured banks up to the current limit of $250,000 per depositor per insured bank.
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