Donald N. Cohen is a litigator who represents broker-dealers and their employees in virtually all aspects of their business. He is experienced in arbitrations and mediations before Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) (which combined the arbitration and enforcement functions of the National Association of Securities Dealers (NASD) and the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE)), and in regulatory and enforcement proceedings before the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), FINRA and other regulatory and self-regulatory organizations. Donald also provides regulatory and compliance advice to broker-dealers and investment advisors and conducts internal investigations for them. He has wide-ranging experience in a broad range of commercial litigation matters.
Before joining Greenberg Traurig, Donald served as executive vice president and general counsel of Gruntal & Co., L.L.C., a national broker-dealer, where he managed all of its legal and compliance affairs including regulatory matters, litigations and arbitrations, internal investigations, investment advisory matters, employment matters, contracts and corporate transactions.
Areas of Concentration
· Securities arbitration and mediation
· Securities regulatory practice
· Securities compliance counseling
· Internal investigations
· Investment advisory matters
· Commercial litigation
Significant Representations
· Defended SEC investigation of broker-dealer investment advisory units and supervised and coordinated settlement with the SEC, including management of client refunds and coordination with an independent consultant appointed by the SEC pursuant to the settlement order.
· Represented broker-dealers and employees in customer and employment arbitrations before FINRA, the NASD, the NYSE and the American Arbitration Organization (AAA).
· Represented broker-dealers and registered representatives regarding regulatory inquiries, investigations, proceedings and enforcement actions conducted by the SEC, FINRA, NYSE, NASD and other regulatory and self-regulatory organizations.
· Represented broker-dealers in "raiding" cases.
· Drafted policies and procedures for broker-dealers concerning sales practice and compliance issues and led in-house training sessions on these issues.
· Drafted and implemented broker-dealer's first investment advisory compliance manual and led in-house training on the policies and procedures.
· Advised broker-dealer regarding legal and compliance issues arising from implementation of fee-based non-investment advisory account program.
· Managed process of obtaining an interpretive release from the SEC allowing principal and agency cross trades in an investment advisory program utilizing outside money managers.
Professional & Community Involvement
· Member, Securities Industry and Financial Markets Association (SIFMA), Compliance & Legal Division
- Former Member, SIFMA Arbitration Committee
· Member, Federal Bar Council
· Member, American Bar Association
· Member, New York State Bar Association
· Member, Association of the Bar of the City of New York
· Arbitrator, Financial Industry Regulatory Authority
· Mediator, Trained by the Safe Horizon Mediation Program
Awards & Recognition
· Rated, AV® Preeminent™ 5.0 out of 5
(Also at White Plains Office)