SEC Enforcement Deputy Retires

Walter Ricciardi, the Security and Exchange Commission’s deputy director of the Division of Enforcement, announced he will retire this month to join the law firm of Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison LLP as a partner.

Ricciardi joined the SEC in April 2004 from PricewaterhouseCoopers and was quickly promoted by SEC Chairman Christopher Cox in October 2005.

Since April 2007, Ricciardi has been in charge of overseeing the commission’s 11 regional offices.

On June 4, he is slated to receive the SEC’s Stanley Sporkin Award in recognition of “exceptionally tenacious and insightful contributions” to the enforcement of federal securities laws.

“From the selection of which cases to bring, to ensuring that the best talent and resources from across the country are brought to bear in every case, to giving the SEC the capacity to move against fraud anywhere in the world in real time, Walter's contributions will long be remembered as a giant step forward for investor protection,” Cox said.