As we await word as to who the next Corp Fin Director is, I thought it might be useful to investigate where these folks typically hail from. Below is an analysis of this list of Corp Fin Directors that I created long ago on TheCorporateCounsel.net. As you can see the bulk of the twenty Directors had served on the Staff in some capacity at a point earlier in their career although that trend has been tempered quite a bit over the last 20 years.
Here’s a Director-by-Director analysis:
- Erik Gerding (2023 – 2024) – Erik was serving as Corp Fin’s Deputy Director when he got promoted. Before joining the SEC as Deputy Director, Erik was a professor and had been in private practice.
- Renee Jones (2021 – 2022) – Renee was the first Director to come from academia and she returned to Boston College after she left the SEC.
- Bill Hinman (2017 – 2020) – Bill came from a West Coast law firm when he joined the SEC as Director. He is the first Director to hail directly from California.
- Keith Higgins (2013 – 2016) – Keith was well-known from the ABA – and spoke annually at my proxy disclosure conference – when he joined the SEC as Director from a Boston law firm.
- Meredith Cross (2009 – 2012) – Meredith had served as Deputy Director of Corp Fin under Linda Quinn and then was at a DC law firm when she returned to the SEC as Director.
- John White (2006 – 2009) – John came from a NYC law firm and was well-known from ABA circles when he joined the SEC as Director.
- Alan Beller (2002 – 2006) – Alan also came from a NYC law firm and was well-known from ABA circles when he joined the SEC as Director.
- David Martin (1999 – 2002) – David came from a DC law firm and had served in Corp Fin and in SEC Chair Shad’s office before that.
- Brian Lane (1996 – 1999) – Brian was the Director when I returned to Corp Fin and I had the good fortune to work with him. Brian had been a Corp Fin staffer who then went to work in SEC Chair Levitt’s office when he got tapped as Director.
- Linda Quinn (1986 – 1996) – The first woman to serve as Director, Linda was working in SEC Chair Shad’s office when she got promoted. And she was the Director during my first tour of duty in Corp Fin.
- John Huber (1984 – 1986) – John became Director at the tender age of 35, being promoted from Deputy Director after rising up through the ranks.
- Lee Spencer (1982 – 1984) – Lee first worked in the SEC’s Division of Investment Management and then joined Corp Fin as Deputy Director before becoming Director.
- Edward Greene (1979 – 1982) – Edward joined the SEC as Deputy Director from a NYC law firm before becoming the Director a year later. After serving as Director, Ed became the General Counsel for the SEC.
- Richard “Dick” Rowe (1976 – 1979) – Dick joined the SEC out of law school and worked his way up to Director.
- Alan Levenson (1970 – 1976) – Alan joined Corp Fin out of law school and then worked for an investment advisor firm before rejoining Corp Fin as Director.
- Charles “Charlie” Shreve (1969 – 1970) – Charlie worked his way up the Corp Fin ranks to become Director.
- Edmund “Ed” Worthy (1962 – 1969) – Ed worked his way up the Corp Fin ranks to become Director.
- Manuel “Manny” Cohen (1960 – 1962) – Manny served on the Staff for nearly twenty years before becoming Director. Manny went on to serve as a SEC Commissioner for several years before becoming the SEC Chair for five years.
- Byron “Barney” Woodside (1952 – 1960) – Barney became a SEC Commissioner after serving as the Director after many years of being in Corp Fin. In fact, he predated the SEC. The SEC only started in 1934 – but Barney had started in the Federal Trade Commission’s Office of Securities in 1933.
- Baldwin Bane (1934 – 1952) – Baldwin is the longest-tenured Director, serving for nearly two decades. As the first Director, Baldwin helped set up the Division and led it as it grew.
Authored by
Broc Romanek