Bruce Bettigole has more than 30 years’ experience as a securities enforcement lawyer and litigator, including 13 years in senior positions on the government/regulatory side. He has been lead trial counsel for the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) as Assistant Chief Litigation Counsel, Chief Counsel for NASD, now known as FINRA, Chief Counsel of NASD’s Criminal Prosecution Assistance Group, and Special Assistant United States Attorney for several U.S. Attorney’s offices. Bruce relies on his deep experience and insider’s knowledge of those agencies to represent clients involved in FINRA, SEC, Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB), state securities commissions, and U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) investigations and litigation, as well as in FINRA arbitrations and private securities class actions.
Bruce provides counsel across a broad spectrum of securities enforcement matters, including allegations of misrepresentations, omissions, accounting fraud, stock manipulation, insider trading, deficient policies and procedures, sales practices, supervision and other key issues. His clients include broker-dealers, investment advisors and their associated persons; major public corporations and their officers, directors and key management personnel; and audit partners at “Big Four” public accounting firms.
Bruce served as Director and Chief Counsel in NASD’s Enforcement Department from 2003 to 2004, where he supervised investigations and litigation. He was Chief Counsel of NASD’s Criminal Prosecution Assistance Group from its inception in 1998 until 2003, supervising the unit and assisting federal, state, and local prosecutors nationwide in criminal securities-related investigations and prosecutions. From 1991 to 1998, Bruce was Assistant Chief Litigation Counsel with the SEC. He also served as Special Assistant U.S. Attorney in New York, Florida, and Nevada, and was lead trial counsel for numerous securities fraud prosecutions.
Client Tools
•Crisis Response & Incident Investigation
Awards and Rankings
Named to The Best Lawyers in America in the areas of administrative/regulatory law, securities regulation and litigation - securities law (2007-2020)
Selected for inclusion in Washington, D.C., Super Lawyers (2013-2020)
President’s Award - NASD (2002)
Eastern District of New York, U.S. Attorney’s Office for assistance in prosecution of Hanover Sterling defendants (2001)
Southern District of New York, U.S. Attorney’s Office for assistance in prosecution of Gordon Hall and Melvin Lloyd Richards (2000)
District of Nevada, U.S. Customs and U.S. Treasury for prosecution of Teletek, Inc. defendants (1999)
Experience
“I have a unique combination of experiences-beginning with working for the SEC, FINRA and as a special assistant U.S. attorney and then working for years in private practice-so I have the benefit of substantial involvement with all the major players for what’s relevant and important for this practice.”
Experience
Served as nationwide counsel for an independent broker-dealer in a series of related regulatory matters, class actions and arbitrations concerning Regulation D offerings and other alternative investments.
Won partial summary judgment and a favorable settlement for the former executive of a public company in litigation against the SEC involving accusations of fraud related to a $1 billion reserve.
Convinced FINRA not to pursue any action against a major broker-dealer in an investigation of equity-indexed annuities.
Represented accounting firms and individual accountants in ancillary or standalone civil and criminal regulatory and enforcement proceedings before the SEC, DOJ and other governmental entities, as well as state and federal grand juries.
News
In the News
S.D.N.Y. Judge Permits Novel Theory and Allows SEC to use Unpaid Taxes as Measure of Disgorgement in Securities Fraud Case (October 1, 2014)
Law.com
Sutherland’s legal alert, “S.D.N.Y. Judge Permits Novel Theory and Allows SEC to use Unpaid Taxes as Measure of Disgorgement in Securities Fraud Case,” was featured in Law.com.
Careful: Corporate credit card charges can kill a career (January 20, 2014)
InvestmentNews
Financial advisers should think twice when considering whether an expense, even a small-ticket item, really belongs on the corporate credit card. In this article in InvestmentNews, Sutherland partner ...
Press Releases
15 Eversheds Sutherland Attorneys Named 2020 Washington DC Super Lawyers and Rising Stars (April 16, 2020)
WASHINGTON-Eversheds Sutherland (US) LLP is pleased to announce that nine of its attorneys based in Washington DC have been selected as top attorneys in the District of Columbia by Super Lawyers . ...
16 Eversheds Sutherland Attorneys Named 2019 Washington DC Super Lawyers and Rising Stars (April 19, 2019)
WASHINGTON-Eversheds Sutherland is pleased to announce that 10 of its attorneys based in Washington DC have been selected as top attorneys in the District of Columbia by Super Lawyers . Additionally, ...
16 Eversheds Sutherland (US) Attorneys Named 2018 Washington DC Super Lawyers and Rising Stars (April 23, 2018)
WASHINGTON-Eversheds Sutherland (US) LLP is pleased to announce that 10 of its attorneys based in Washington DC have been selected as top attorneys in the District of Columbia by Super Lawyers . ...
Four Eversheds Sutherland Attorneys Named Lawyer of the Year; 80 Lawyers Recognized in 2018 Edition of The Best Lawyers in America (August 15, 2017)
Eversheds Sutherland is pleased to announce that four attorneys have been selected as “Lawyer of the Year” in their respective fields by The Best Lawyers in America, and 80 attorneys have been ...
Eversheds Sutherland 2016 Pro Bono Hours Add Up for Worthwhile Causes (July 31, 2017)
Eversheds Sutherland is pleased to announce that its attorneys spent more than 15,000 hours on 614 pro bono matters in 2016. The cases, which ranged from contract disputes to high-profile asylum ...
17 Eversheds Sutherland (US) Attorneys Named 2017 Washington DC Super Lawyers and Rising Stars (April 25, 2017)
WASHINGTON-Eversheds Sutherland (US) LLP is pleased to announce that 10 of the firm’s attorneys based in Washington DC have been selected as top attorneys in the District of Columbia by Super ...
Six Sutherland Attorneys Named Lawyer of the Year; 81 Lawyers Recognized in 2017 Edition of The Best Lawyers in America (August 15, 2016)
ATLANTA and WASHINGTON-Sutherland Asbill & Brennan LLP is pleased to announce that that six attorneys have been selected as “Lawyer of the Year” in their respective fields by The Best Lawyers in ...
20 Sutherland Attorneys Named 2016 Washington DC Super Lawyers and Rising Stars (April 21, 2016)
WASHINGTON-Sutherland Asbill & Brennan LLP is pleased to announce that 13 of the firm’s attorneys based in Washington DC have been selected as top attorneys in the District of Columbia by Super ...
Five Sutherland Partners Named “Lawyer of the Year” 82 Lawyers Recognized in 2016 Edition of The Best Lawyers in America (August 17, 2015)
ATLANTA and WASHINGTON-Sutherland Asbill & Brennan LLP is pleased to announce that five partners have been selected as “Lawyer of the Year in their respective fields by The Best Lawyers in America, ...
23 Sutherland Attorneys Named 2015 Washington, DC, Super Lawyers and Rising Stars (April 23, 2015)
WASHINGTON (April 23, 2015)-Sutherland Asbill & Brennan LLP today announced that 19 of the firm’s attorneys based in Washington, DC, have been selected as top attorneys in the state by Super ...
Presentations
“The number one issue our clients face today is the ongoing saga of how to survive regulatory scrutiny and still manage to run their businesses.”
Presentations
Regulatory actions, government investigations and litigation in a post-coronavirus world: Part III - Investor arbitrations, litigation and class actions (April 13, 2020)
Join us for the final webcast in a three-part series related to COVID-19 and its impact on the financial services industry. In this webcast, Eversheds Sutherland Partners Bruce Bettigole and Larry ...
Older Investors Summit 2017 (October 19, 2017)
Eversheds Sutherland (US) Partner Holly Smith moderates the panel, The View from Capitol Hill: The Senior$afe Act and Beyond and Eversheds Sutherland (US) Partner Bruce Bettigole moderates the ...
Roundtable Discussion: Final DOL ERISA Fiduciary Definition and Related Exemptions (May 4, 2016)
Sutherland hosts a roundtable on the “Final DOL ERISA Fiduciary Definition and Related Exemptions” on May 4, 2016, in Minneapolis, Minnesota. The program is an in-depth discussion regarding the U.S. ...
Webcast: Senior Investors (March 22, 2016)
ACA Compliance Group
Sutherland Partner Bruce Bettigole presents Senior Investors, a webcast hosted by the ACA Compliance Group on March 22, 2016.
Webcast: A Share vs. I Share Issues (March 22, 2016)
Sutherland Partner Bruce Bettigole presents A Share vs. I Share Issues, a webcast hosted by the ACA Compliance Group on March 22, 2016.
Discovery and Pre-Hearing Preparation (February 12, 2015)
FINRA Disciplinary Hearings Forum
Sutherland Partner Bruce Bettigole moderates the panel Discovery and Pre-Hearing Preparation at the FINRA Disciplinary Hearings Forum held February 12, 2015, at the SIFMA Conference Center in New ...
Developing Effective Compliance Programs (December 11, 2013)
Defending Corporations and Individuals in Government Investigations
Government enforcement agencies are investigating corporate conduct with unprecedented vigor and creating a regulatory environment that poses enormous risk to companies and their executives. ...
How to Investigate When You Are Being Investigated (September 21, 2013)
National Asian Pacific Bar Association Northeast Regional Conference (New York)
Fundamentals of Broker-Dealer Regulation 2010 (June 28, 2010)
Practising Law Institute
Sutherland Partners Clifford E. Kirsch and Bruce Bettigole are speaking at PLI’s program, Fundamentals of Broker-Dealer Regulation 2010, June 28, 2010, at the PLI New York Center in New York, New ...
Publications
“Parallel proceedings involving the SEC, FINRA, state securities commissions and federal prosecutors are at an all-time high. More than ever, defense counsel need to be sensitive to these issues and comfortable dealing with all the relevant agencies.”
Legal Alerts
Corrupt but not criminal: US Supreme Court tosses Bridgegate convictions (May 14, 2020)
Corrupt? Yes. An abuse of power? Yes. But criminal? Not quite. On May 7, 2020, the US Supreme Court unanimously overturned the convictions of two former New Jersey public officials responsible for ...
CARES Act loans and related programs come with increased oversight and risk of False Claims Act prosecution: Borrowers beware (May 4, 2020)
On March 27, 2020, the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security Act of 2020 (CARES Act) came into effect as part of an ongoing effort to combat the financial crisis arising from the COVID-19 ...
The emerging patchwork of fiduciary investment advice regulation - Putting the pieces together (update) (April 15, 2020)
As anticipated, 2020 has seen a number of fiduciary and best interest advice regulations advance at both the federal and state levels. Firms subject to these regulations face challenges in dealing ...
The DOJ takes its first enforcement action to combat COVID-19 fraud (March 23, 2020)
The US Department of Justice has taken its first enforcement action against COVID-19 fraud, illustrating its previously stated commitment to prosecute “bad actors” attempting to exploit the global ...
The DOJ’s response to COVID-19 (March 17, 2020)
As we all respond to COVID-19 (the coronavirus), we should keep an eye on the responsive measures being taken by the US Department of Justice (DOJ), and consider how those measures might impact ...
Legal Alert: DOJ further aligns Export Control and Sanctions Enforcement Policy with FCPA enforcement practices (January 14, 2020)
On December 13, 2019, the US Department of Justice (DOJ) announced a revised Export Control and Sanctions Enforcement Policy for Business Organizations (Revised EC/S Policy),1 clarifying its prior ...
Regulators have bank deposit sweep programs in their sights (November 21, 2019)
Coming on the heels of the share class initiative,1 the US Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) is at the initial stages of another initiative involving concerns about adviser disclosures and ...
The Hoskins conviction and the implications of the DOJ’s success in using the money laundering statute to police bribery (November 12, 2019)
The US Department of Justice (DOJ) is increasingly using the money laundering statute to prosecute individuals in corruption and bribery cases. The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) is the primary ...
Second Circuit broadens litigants’ ability to seek discovery for foreign legal proceedings (October 10, 2019)
In collaboration with Eversheds Sutherland attorneys Rachael Shek and James Southworth .
On October 7, 2019, the US Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit extended litigants’ ability to seek discovery under 28 U.S.C. 1782. Parties typically pursue discovery as part of the litigation ...
Legal Alert: DOJ and CFTC team up on spoofing enforcement (September 26, 2019)
On September 16, 2019, the US Department of Justice (DOJ) indicted three precious metals traders for allegedly violating six criminal statutes, including the Racketeer Influenced and Corrupt ...
Articles
Tracking The DOJ’s Threefold Response To COVID-19 (March 19, 2020)
Law360
As we all respond to COVID-19 we should keep an eye on the responsive measures being taken by the US Department of Justice (DOJ) and consider how those measures might impact companies and individuals ...
Challenges to the SEC’s Enforcement Remedies (Fall 2017)
Partnering Perspectives
In June 2017, the US Supreme Court unanimously held in Kokesh v. Securities and Exchange Commission that disgorgement as a remedy in SEC civil injunctive actions is subject to the five-year statute ...
FINRA Continues to Step Up Focus on Senior Investors (June 27, 2017)
Law360
In April 2017, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority’s (FINRA) National Adjudicatory Council (NAC) introduced new sanction guidelines that allow the NAC and FINRA staff to consider the ...
The Final Rule: DOL’s Expanded Definition of Investment Advice Fiduciary Under ERISA and Revised Complex of Exemptions (April 12, 2016)
Just less than a year since its proposal, and just more than six months after receiving thousands of pages of commentary, petitions and hearing testimony, the Department of Labor finalized its ...
2015 Amendments to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure (November 24, 2015)
The Litigation Practice Group of Sutherland Asbill & Brennan LLP has published “2015 Amendments to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure.” This publication reflects important changes to the Federal ...
What Does It Take to Make the SEC Happy? (October 27, 2014)
Law360
To ensure that broker-dealers (BDs) do not inadvertently facilitate an unlawful distribution of securities, the Securities and Exchange Commission has long required BDs to conduct a “reasonable ...
Novel Theory in Wyly Case Could Change SEC Disgorgement (October 20, 2014)
Law360
In a case against Dallas billionaires Sam Wyly and the estate of his late brother, Charles, Judge Shira Scheindlin of the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York agreed with the ...
Broker-Dealers’ Internal Investigations and Claims of Privilege Under FINRA Rule 4530 After ‘Halliburton’ (April 22, 2014)
Bloomberg BNA Securities Regulation & Law Report
The decision by the U.S. District Court for the United States ex rel. Barko v. Halliburton Co. held that a government contractor’s internal investigation of its employees’ wrongdoing is not protected ...
Alternative Investments: What Regulators Are After (June 19, 2013)
Law 360
Regulators continue to pursue investigations and enforcement actions involving alternative investments. In this recent article from Law360, Sutherland Partners Bruce Bettigole and Cheryl Haas and ...
Defending Clients in Financial Regulatory Authority Investigations - and - Defending Clients in Public Company Accounting Oversight Board Investigations (2011)
Defending Corporations and Individuals in Government Investigations, 2011 ed. and annual updates
Newsletters
Eversheds Sutherland’s Securities Enforcement Global Update (Winter 2019)
Eversheds Sutherland has completed its Securities Enforcement Global Update for Winter 2019, highlighting newsworthy events, cases and sanctions from financial regulators in the United States and ...
Eversheds Sutherland’s Securities Enforcement Global Update (Fall 2018)
Eversheds Sutherland has completed its Securities Enforcement Global Update for Fall 2018, highlighting newsworthy events, cases and sanctions from financial regulators in the United States and ...
Eversheds Sutherland Corporate Crime and Investigations Global Newsletter (September 2018)
Eversheds Sutherland's quarterly Corporate Crime and Investigations Global Newsletter provides our clients and colleagues with updates from around the world. The newsletter aims to highlight ...
Eversheds Sutherland’s Securities Enforcement Global Update (Summer 2018)
Eversheds Sutherland has completed its Securities Enforcement Global Update for Summer 2018, highlighting newsworthy events, cases and sanctions from financial regulators in the United States and ...
Eversheds Sutherland’s Securities Enforcement Global Update (Winter 2018)
Eversheds Sutherland has completed its Securities Enforcement Global Update for Winter 2018, highlighting newsworthy events, cases and sanctions from financial regulators in the United States and ...
Eversheds Sutherland’s Securities Enforcement Global Update (Fall 2017)
Eversheds Sutherland has completed its Securities Enforcement Global Update for Fall 2017, highlighting newsworthy events, cases and sanctions from financial regulators in the United States and ...
Partnering Perspectives: Insights from Inside and Outside the Corporate Law Department (Fall 2017)
With the US poised to decrease regulation and the outcome of Brexit unknown, multinational institutions face a great deal of unpredictability in the regulatory landscape. We are pleased to present ...
Eversheds Sutherland’s Securities Enforcement Global Update (Summer 2017)
Eversheds Sutherland has completed its Securities Enforcement Global Update for Summer 2017, highlighting newsworthy events, cases, and sanctions from financial regulators in the United States and ...
