Martin Dunn, the number two official at the Securities and Exchange Commission unit that watches over initial public offerings and financial statement reporting is leaving the agency to become a partner at an international law firm. The SEC made the announcement on Monday noting that Dunn, the current deputy director of the Division of Corporation Finance, would be joining the Washington, D.C., office of O’Melveny & Myers at the end of August.
Dunn, who was appointed deputy director in 2002, served in the corporation finance division of the SEC for 19 years. His positions at the agency also included chief counsel, associate director of legal and disclosure operations, as well as a brief month-long stint as acting director in 2006—between the time former Division Director Alan Beller left the commission and current Director John White joined. Dunn started his career at the SEC in 1988 as a staff attorney.
Dunn played a key role in several areas within the division. He has been praised for helping draft, implement, and interpret federal securities laws, including the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002. He also played a “critical” role in interpreting and applying the SEC’s requirement in the proxy and shareholder proposal process, securities offering reform, and in its “plain English” and small business efforts. SEC Chairman Christopher Cox said Dunn’s “sound judgment and solid expertise” made him a genuine leader at the agency.
The SEC has not announced Dunn’s replacement, or whether the it has begun the search process.
Based in Los Angeles, O’Melveny & Myers has 13 offices around the world. At the D.C. office, Martin will work with current partner William Coleman, the former secretary of transportation in the Ford administration.