The SEC Launches Action Lookup Website

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission ("SEC") has launched a new website to assist investors as well as recruiting advisors with a search tool to search for those individuals for which the SEC has taken action.

The website search includes individuals against whom a judgment or order has been issued by the SEC, including individuals who settled, defaulted, or contested their actions, provided a judgment or order was issued against them.

The results will not include individuals whose cases are currently pending at the trial court or those against whom no judgment or order has been issued. Results will also not include individuals named in district court actions as “relief defendants.” Click here for a full description.

Related: Priorities for the 2018 SEC Examination

Advisor Takeaways


The SEC continues to try and close information gaps for investors. Compliance personnel should reference this site before hiring any supervised person. In addition, while reviewing these regulatory actions may provide some entertainment value, there are lessons to be learned. Not every action is rooted in intent. Mistakes happen and mistakes can be costly. Compliance Officers should add this resource to their toolkit.