Trump Taps Roisman as Acting SEC Chair
Roisman replaces Jay Clayton, who had been in the role since May 4, 2017 and recently stepped down as expected.
President Donald Trump has designated Elad Roisman to serve as acting chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission. Roisman replaces Jay Clayton, who stepped down from the SEC last week.
Clayton was sworn in May 4, 2017, and left the SEC as one of its longest serving chairs. He announced in mid-November that he planned to depart before year-end.
“I am humbled and honored to serve as the acting chairman,” Roisman said in a statement Monday. “During the time I am in this role, I am fully committed to maintaining the steady course that Chairman Clayton charted during his admirable tenure. I look forward to continuing to work with the incredible SEC staff and my fellow Commissioners as we steward this agency into the new year.”
During his time as SEC chairman, Clayton advanced more than 65 final rules. Chief among them were Regulation Best Interest and the Customer Relationship Summary form, or Form CRS.
Roisman is serving with Republican Commissioner Hester Peirce and Democratic Commissioners Allison Lee and Caroline Crenshaw, all of whom were nominated by Trump.
See: SEC Chair Clayton to Step Down
Short-Term Role
He was sworn in as a commissioner on Sept. 11, 2018, and likely won’t stay with the organization much longer.
President-elect Joe Biden will have the chance to install a Democratic majority on the SEC with a new member, though neither party can have more than three members serving as commissioners at any time.
SEC commissioners serve fixed terms, and the president can nominate any commissioner he or she wants to serve as chairman.
Biden may choose to nominate Crenshaw or Lee as SEC chair or nominate another Democrat to serve as its chair, according to a report from The Hill.
Prior to joining the SEC, Roisman served as chief counsel on the U.S. Senate Committee on Banking, Housing, and Urban Affairs.
He previously held positions as a counsel to SEC Commissioner Dan Gallagher, as a chief counsel at NYSE Euronext, and as an associate at the law firm Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy in New York.
Roisman earned a juris doctorate from the Boston University School of Law and graduated from Cornell University with a bachelor’s degree in history.