Overview
- The SEC has sent a final rule titled “Rescission of Policy Regarding Denials in Settlements of Enforcement Actions” for review at the White House budget office, the last step before publication.
- This rule targets the long‑standing condition that lets parties settle without admitting wrongdoing only if they also agree not to deny the SEC’s claims in public.
- If adopted, defendants could resolve a case and then say the SEC’s account is wrong or incomplete, which would reshape press releases, investor calls, and employee messages after settlements.
- Lawyers expect the agency to adjust by seeking admissions in more cases or negotiating different terms, and outside counsel note the SEC could still ask for neither‑admit‑nor‑deny language case by case.
- Rule 202.5(e) has governed SEC settlements since 1972, drawing court scrutiny and free‑speech challenges because it left the government’s version as the only public narrative.