The Securities and Exchange Commission has announced that Melissa Hodgman has been named Associate Director in the SEC’s Enforcement Division. Hodgman succeeds Stephen L. Cohen, who left the SEC in June.
Hodgman began working in the Enforcement Division in 2008 as a staff attorney. She joined the Market Abuse Unit in 2010 and was promoted to Assistant Director in 2012.
Hodgman has investigated or supervised dozens of enforcement recommendations spanning a variety of misconduct, including: The SEC’s first case against a brokerage firm for failing to file SARs when appropriate; Fraud charges against a Wall Street CEO and his company, family members, and business associates accused of secretly obtaining control and manipulating the stock of Chinese companies they were purportedly guiding through the process of raising capital and becoming publicly-traded in the United States; And charges against Charles Schwab Investment Management, Charles Schwab & Co., and two executives for making misleading statements regarding the Schwab YieldPlus Fund and failing to establish, maintain and enforce policies and procedures to prevent the misuse of material, nonpublic information.
Hodgman has led the Enforcement Division’s Cross-Border Working Group, which provides expertise and assistance of matters with international actors and implications. Hodgman also co-founded and served as the enforcement representative on the Chair’s Attorney Honors Program, and is a member of the Enforcement Division’s hiring committee at its Washington D.C. headquarters.
“Melissa has supervised and investigated a broad range of noteworthy and first-of-their-kind cases across the spectrum of the securities industry and involving misconduct located around the world,” said Andrew J. Ceresney, Director of the SEC’s Enforcement Division. “She has distinguished herself with her excellent judgment and creativity, and I am pleased to have her join the senior ranks of the Enforcement Division.”
Hodgman said, “I am honored by this appointment and look forward to continuing our tradition of pursuing tough but fair enforcement actions in complex and cutting-edge cases, especially matters involving cross-border issues and efforts to hold gatekeepers accountable for breaches of their professional standards.”
Before joining the SEC staff, Hodgman worked as an associate at Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy in Washington. Hodgman earned her masters of law with distinction in securities and financial regulation in 2007 from Georgetown University Law Center, her law degree with high honors from Georgetown University Law Center in 1994, and her bachelor of science degree from Georgetown University School of Foreign Service in 1990. Hodgman received the Ellen B. Ross Award as well as an SEC Chairman’s Award in 2010.