The Supreme Court has agreed to review the constitutionality of the Securities and Exchange Commission’s (SEC’s) system of adjudicating enforcement actions with tenure-protected administrative law judges employed by the prosecuting agency.
The high court agreed May 16 to hear the case, SEC v. Cochran, court file 21-1239, in an unsigned order. The justices, as is their practice, did not explain why they granted the petition for certiorari, or review.
The U.S. Court of Appeals for the 5th Circuit sided with Michelle Cochran, a certified public accountant, finding she has the right to challenge the constitutionality of the removal protections of her administrative law judge (ALJ) in federal court before undergoing an adjudication before an SEC ALJ….