Proskauer on Private Fund Litigation

Robert Sutton

Partner

212.969.3480

Robert is a partner of the Private Funds Group and a member of the Corporate Department. He is a seasoned practitioner with over 20 years of experience counseling managers and advisers of private funds on regulatory matters, as well as regulatory issues related to the formation and operation of private equity, credit, real estate, infrastructure, hedge and other private funds.

Rob has a deep knowledge of the market practice of asset managers and in particular, as it relates to Advisers Act-related issues. From some of the largest and most sophisticated firms in the global asset management industry to start-ups and mid-sized firms, Rob’s experience includes a wide spectrum of funds and asset classes across their life cycles. Rob regularly advises on matters in connection with: U.S. investment adviser registration and regulation; Advisers Act and other U.S. securities law issues relating to the formation, marketing and offering of private funds; Identifying and managing conflicts of interest, and addressing related Advisers Act risks, SEC examinations, and exam readiness preparation; Design and implementation of investment adviser compliance policies and procedures; U.S. regulatory issues relating to purchases and sales of investment advisory businesses (minority stake and control stake transactions, buy-side and sell-side representations); Advisers Act and other U.S. regulatory issues relating to private fund restructurings and recapitalizations, strip sales, continuation fund formations and similar transactions; Advisers Act issues relating to the formation of SPACs by investment advisers; and, Investment Company Act status analyses of private fund structures, investment transaction structures and other non-registered investment company structures.

Rob has been recognized by his clients and peers for his extraordinary work, gaining various accolades including mentions in preeminent directories such as The Legal 500. He is also very active within the private funds industry, contributing to numerous publications and collaborating on several speaking engagements.

Prior to joining Proskauer, Rob was a partner in the Investment Funds Group at Kirkland & Ellis.

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The Countdown Starts: Compliance Dates Set for Private Fund Adviser Rules

Earlier today, the SEC’s Private Fund Adviser Rules were published in the Federal Register. As with all federal regulations, publication in the Federal Register begins the countdown to the Rules’ compliance dates. These dates are listed in the table below. Please see our prior alerts for an overview of the Rules’ provisions, a summary of … Continue Reading

Lawsuit Challenges Private Fund Adviser Rules

By Robert Sutton and Robert E. Plaze on September 6, 2023 Posted in Asset Management, Compliance, Disputes, Enforcement, Hedge Funds, Private Equity, Private Equity Litigation, Regulation, SEC, Securities Law

On Friday, September 1, 2023, a lawsuit was filed with the federal Court of Appeals in the Fifth Circuit challenging the validity and enforceability of the recently adopted Private Fund Adviser Rules under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 (the “Advisers Act”). (Please see our prior alerts for a description of the Rules’ provisions and … Continue Reading

Second Circuit Holds That the Syndicated Term Loans in Kirschner Are Not Securities

By Robert Pommer and Robert Sutton on August 29, 2023 Posted in Disputes, Enforcement, Regulation, SEC, Securities Law

On August 24, 2023, the Second Circuit Court of Appeals issued its much-anticipated decision in Kirschner v. JP Morgan Chase Bank, holding that the syndicate term loans at issue were not securities. As noted in our earlier blog post, the SEC declined the court’s request to file an amicus brief, forgoing the opportunity to provide its … Continue Reading

SEC Adopts Private Fund Adviser Rules

By Robert Sutton, Robert E. Plaze and Mark S. Audet on August 24, 2023 Posted in Asset Management, Compliance, Disputes, Enforcement, Hedge Funds, Private Credit, Private Equity Litigation, Regulation, SEC, Securities Law

Yesterday, the five SEC commissioners voted 3-2, along party lines, to approve the Private Fund Adviser Rules. The final Rules scale back from what was initially proposed 18 months ago, in ways that are likely to be a relief to many private fund advisers. (For a summary of the initial proposal, please see our previous … Continue Reading

Are Syndicated Term Loans Securities? The SEC Declines to Weigh in on Kirschner

By Robert Pommer and Robert Sutton on August 2, 2023 Posted in Disputes, Enforcement, Regulation, SEC, Securities Law

Participants in the syndicated loan markets may have been relieved last month when the SEC declined to file the amicus brief requested by the Second Circuit Court of Appeals in Kirschner v. JP Morgan Chase Bank. In an unusual turn of events, the SEC choose not to weigh in on whether the syndicated term loans at … Continue Reading

Complying with the New SEC Marketing Rule: Seven Months in and Still Adapting

On November 4, 2022, compliance with amended Rule 206(4)-1 (the “Marketing Rule”) became mandatory for all investment advisers registered with the Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”).[1] Seven months since the compliance date, SEC-registered investment advisers continue to discover and adapt to challenges in applying the Marketing Rule. Newly formed advisers also face significant obstacles … Continue Reading

The Trend Continues: Increased Regulatory Focus on Privacy & Cybersecurity for Private Funds

Recent enforcement actions highlight the increased regulatory scrutiny that private funds may face with respect to internal cybersecurity protocols and responses to cyber-crimes and cyber incidents under new and updated cybersecurity laws. … Continue Reading

Regulators’ Increased Focus on GP-Led Secondaries and Continuation Funds

As IPOs and other traditional paths to liquidity for private assets have become more challenging, GP-led secondary transactions have emerged as a powerful and popular tool across closed-end private funds, leading to explosive growth over the last five years. And while macro factors influence their prevalence year over year, these transactions remain broadly popular across the … Continue Reading

Energy Transition: A New Risk Climate for Investors

Go to any private equity event in the last 12 months, and “energy transition” will have been discussed, meaning the shift in energy production away from fossil‑based systems to low or zero carbon ones. As fund managers continue to raise funds focused on investments in this sector, we see no reason for this trend to … Continue Reading

Ripples Following the SPAC Wave: Litigation and Regulatory Risks

It’s a pattern we often see in boom-and-bust cycles—disputes rising in the period after a wave crests. SPAC deal volume hit an unprecedented high in 2021, but then slowed down in 2022 alongside IPOs. However, the fallout from the SPAC wave will continue to unfold this year, generating increased regulatory attention and a growing number of … Continue Reading

Messaging Missteps: SEC’s Increasing Focus on Off-Channel Communications

The SEC’s Enforcement Division is conducting a sweep investigation of large investment advisers regarding their employees’ use of “off-channel” communications. The sweep, which has been widely reported in the press, focuses on text messages from personal phones, personal email, WhatsApp and other platforms not typically captured or monitored by advisers. The sweep is causing considerable … Continue Reading

SEC Overreach: Insurers Underwrite?

Implications of SEC attempt to curb indemnification for private fund managers The SEC spent 2022 making multiple and sweeping proposals to amend rules under the Advisers Act, many of which have the ability to significantly re-shape market standards for private funds. Here, we focus on the SEC’s proposal to undo a common protection for private … Continue Reading

The New Reality: Valuation in a Volatile Market

Amid rising interest rates, tightening credit markets, geopolitical concerns in Europe and Asia, stubborn inflation and continuing supply chain issues, there is a growing sense of economic uncertainty. This uncertainty will no doubt increase the frequency of valuation disputes in the year ahead. We generally see valuation disputes spring from four primary sources: Valuation disputes … Continue Reading

In Continuation of Longstanding Focus on Cybersecurity, SEC Proposes Significant Amendments to Regulation S-P

By Mark S. Audet, Ryan P. Blaney, Nolan Goldberg, Robert E. Plaze, Robert Pommer and Robert Sutton on April 5, 2023 Posted in Compliance, Cybersecurity, Enforcement, News, Regulation, SEC, Securities Law

On March 15, 2023 the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) released its proposal to amend Regulation S-P: Privacy of Consumer Financial Information and Safeguarding Customer Information, while simultaneously issuing two additional cybersecurity-related rule proposals[1] and re-opening the comment period for its previously-proposed cybersecurity risk management rule released in February 2022.[2] This set of sweeping reforms … Continue Reading

Crypto Contagion – Managing Risk on Multiple Fronts

Crypto firm bankruptcies and resulting disruption in the crypto ecosystem will continue to exacerbate liquidity and regulatory concerns in this space. Signs of contagion are evident as prices of almost every cryptocurrency type have halved in recent months. Since all participants supporting the crypto ecosystem are at risk, managing that risk is critical.… Continue Reading

Portfolio Companies in Distress: Navigating the Risks from SVB and Other Threats to Liquidity and Solvency

Everything, everywhere, all at once is our risk thesis for 2023, but one must not forget about concentration risk. This issue has rocketed up diligence agendas for LPs and GPs alike as the collapse of Silicon Valley Bank proved it really was the bank for venture capital.The entry of SVB into receivership on March 10, 2023 highlighted just … Continue Reading

Top Ten Regulatory and Litigation Risks for Private Funds in 2023

Everything, everywhere, all at once, as a descriptor, captures the litigation and regulatory risks for the asset management industry in 2023. Every corner of the market faces greater risks than at any time since 2008. After years of breakneck growth fueled by low interest rates and a largely laissez faire regulatory regime, significant change is … Continue Reading

SEC Examinations in 2023 to Focus on “Riskier Private Funds” and New Marketing Rule

By Robert E. Plaze, Robert Sutton and Mark S. Audet on February 15, 2023 Posted in Asset Management, Cryptocurrency, Examinations, Hedge Funds, Private Equity, Regulation, SEC, Securities Law

On February 7, 2023, the Division of Examinations of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission released its 2023 Examination Priorities (“Annual Priorities”). Released at the beginning of each calendar year, the priorities tend to repeat the previous year’s priorities, and consumers of these regulatory tea leaves need to search closely for clues as to what … Continue Reading

SEC Proposes ESG Reporting and Disclosure Requirements for Private Fund Advisers

By Robert E. Plaze, Robert Sutton and Mark S. Audet on June 13, 2022 Posted in Compliance, Enforcement, Hedge Funds, Private Equity, Regulation, SEC

On May 25, the Securities and Exchange Commission issued proposed rules under the Investment Advisers Act of 1940 for advisers to private funds that consider environmental, social or governance factors (“ESG”) as part of one or more significant investment strategies. The proposed rules would require advisers employing ESG strategies to report additional information about those … Continue Reading

Portfolio Company Risk: Plaintiffs Set Sights on Sponsors and Board Directors

By Steven Baker, Margaret A. Dale, Michael R. Hackett, William Komaroff, Kirsten E. Lapham, Timothy W. Mungovan, Dorothy Murray, Joshua M. Newville, Todd J. Ohlms, Seetha Ramachandran, Jonathan M. Weiss, Robert Sutton, Julia Alonzo, James Anderson, Julia M. Ansanelli, Adam L. Deming, Reut N. Samuels and Hena M. Vora on June 2, 2022 Posted in Asset Management, Compliance, Disputes, Enforcement, Private Equity, Private Equity Litigation

As our other Top Ten posts have demonstrated, there is no shortage of risks for private fund sponsors to navigate in today’s economic and regulatory environment. Nevertheless, they need to prioritize the risk that hits closest to home – lawsuits by private litigants seeking to pull sponsors, their funds, and their board director designees into … Continue Reading

SEC Reopens Comment Period for Proposed Private Fund Adviser Rules

By Howard J. Beber, Michael Mavrides, Robert E. Plaze and Robert Sutton on May 10, 2022 Posted in Asset Management, SEC, Securities Law

On May 9th, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (“SEC”) announced that it will reopen the public comment period on its proposed rules relating to private fund advisers. The comment period will now remain open until 30 days after the publication of this announcement in the Federal Register. For more details on this timely announcement, … Continue Reading

The Bottom Line of the SEC Proposed Private Fund Rules

By Howard J. Beber, Michael Mavrides, Kelli L. Moll, Robert E. Plaze, Robert Sutton and Christopher Wells on May 3, 2022 Posted in Asset Management, Compliance, Examinations, Hedge Funds, Private Equity, Regulation, SEC

On February 9, 2022, the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) proposed new rules and amendments to existing rules under the U.S. Investment Advisers Act of 1940, as amended, that would have notable practical implications for private funds advisers, in many cases regardless of the adviser’s registration status. At a high level, the proposed … Continue Reading

Conflicts of Interest: How High Will the Bar be Raised?

The SEC last month proposed rules under the Advisers Act indicating a dramatic shift in how the SEC intends to reduce conflicts of interest involving private fund managers and their investors. As we previously noted in the context of increased disclosure obligations, the SEC’s recent approach previews a sea change redefining the relationship between private … Continue Reading

SEC Division of Examinations Announces 2022 Examination Priorities

By Robert Leonard, Michael Mavrides, Robert E. Plaze, Robert Sutton and Jeffrey D. Greenhouse on April 8, 2022 Posted in Asset Management, Compliance, Enforcement, Examinations, Hedge Funds, Private Equity, Regulation, Securities Law

On March 30, 2022, the Division of Examinations of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (the “SEC”) announced its examination priorities for fiscal year 2022. The annual publication of the Division’s examination priorities is intended to align with the Division’s four pillars of promoting and improving compliance, preventing fraud, monitoring risk, and informing policy, and … Continue Reading

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