SEC commissioner Roel Campos is headed to the law firm of Cooley Godward Kronish LLP as a partner in the business litigation practice. Campos will join the firm in early September after departing the SEC.

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Cooley Godward Kronish LLP announced today that Roel C. Campos, a former commissioner of the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), will join the Firm as a partner in the business litigation practice. Campos was serving his second term when the SEC announced recently that he would return to the private sector. Campos is expected to join Cooley in early September after completing his transition from the SEC. He will be resident in the Firm's Washington, DC office and will assume the role of partner-in-charge of that office.

At Cooley, Campos will focus on representing companies in SEC enforcement matters and internal investigations, advising board and committees involving governance matters and compliance issues, and advising private equity, hedge and mutual funds regarding regulatory matters. Campos has been a respected expert and influential voice within the SEC as to enforcement actions, and while at the SEC presided over hundreds of complex enforcement cases.

"As companies navigate the post-Sarbanes Oxley business regulatory environment, Roel represents a unique and extremely talented resource for guidance and advice. We are honored and delighted that he has joined our Firm," said Chairman and CEO Stephen C. Neal. "In addition to his talents as a lawyer, advisor and counselor to our clients, we also look forward to Roel playing a key part in the further growth and expansion of our Washington, DC office."

Campos was first appointed to the SEC by President George W. Bush and confirmed by the U.S. Senate as a commissioner in August 2002. He was confirmed at the same time Congress passed the Sarbanes Oxley Act (SOX), and as a commissioner Campos was one of the key policy makers and architects of the SEC rules implementing SOX. During his two terms, he helped lead the SEC in the study and crafting of the Commission's regulations implementing SOX, accounting independence and oversight rules, attorney fraud reporting rules, securities offering reform, mutual fund governance and compliance rules, hedge fund adviser rules and the new National Market System.

"Many of Cooley's public securities attorneys, several of whom were also with the SEC, are considered among the nation's thought leaders in the public securities arena," said Campos. "I look forward to working with my new colleagues at Cooley and advising companies on important issues related to SEC guidelines and corporate governance that will benefit the companies themselves, as well as continue to bolster investor confidence."

Campos began his career in private practice with Jones Day in 1979. In addition to his experience in private practice, Campos was an Assistant United States Attorney in Los Angeles from 1985-1989. He was a founder of a venture-capital-funded broadcasting company, El Dorado Communications, in the mid 1990s.

Campos earned his B.S. in Engineering Management and Economics from the U.S. Air Force Academy in 1971, his M.B.A. from the UCLA Graduate School of Business in 1972, and his J.D. from Harvard Law School in 1979.

With Campos joining the Firm, Cooley caps an extremely busy summer of lateral additions in its East Coast offices. Michael Knight, former Assistant Director of Mergers II Division of the Bureau of Competition within the Federal Trade Commission, joins Campos in the Washington, DC office.

In New York, Cooley recently added Laura Grossfield Birger as a partner in its business litigation practice. Birger was the Chief of the General Crimes Unit in the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York. Jennifer Coplan joined the Firm from Debevoise & Plimpton. Coplan will be the first New York-based partner in Cooley's technology transactions group.

These New York and Washington partner additions occurred concurrently with the opening of the Firm's Boston office on July 16 with 10 lateral partners. Since then the office has added 12 associates. It is expected that by the end of the summer there will be 25 attorneys on board in Boston.

About Cooley's Washington DC Office

Cooley's 30-attorney Washington, DC office focuses on Washington-centric practices including international trade, securities enforcement and compliance, government contracts, intellectual property and antitrust/competition. To accommodate the office's expansion, it will move to new space this fall.

About Cooley Godward Kronish LLP

Cooley Godward Kronish's 600 attorneys have an entrepreneurial spirit and deep, substantive experience, and are committed to solving clients' most challenging legal matters. From small companies with big ideas to international enterprises with diverse legal needs, Cooley has the breadth of legal resources to enable companies of all sizes to seize opportunities in today's global marketplace. The firm represents clients across a broad array of dynamic industry sectors, including technology, life sciences, financial services, retail and energy.

The firm has full-service offices in major commercial, government and technology centers: Palo Alto, CA, New York, NY, San Diego, CA, San Francisco, CA, Reston, VA, Broomfield, CO, Washington, DC and Boston, MA.

For additional information, please visit www.cooley.com. 

Edited by: Erin Kello


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