Foley & Lardner LLP announced today that Jessica Matelis, who most recently served as a senior counsel in the Division of Enforcement at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, is joining the firm’s Washington, D.C. office as a partner in the Securities Enforcement & Litigation Practice.
While at the SEC, Matelis led investigations into a wide range of potential violations of the federal securities laws, including financial statement fraud, disclosure fraud, auditor misconduct, insider trading, conduct of investment companies and investment advisors, and market manipulation. In addition to her investigations, Matelis litigated a complex, multi-year insider trading case in the U.S. District Court for the Central District of California.
Prior to her time at the SEC, Matelis spent more than 10 years in private practice at international law firms in Washington, D.C., including a four-year stint as an associate at Foley. In her private practice, she represented public companies, boards of directors, officers, investment advisors, and accounting and auditing firms in various securities regulatory, enforcement and compliance matters before the SEC, the U.S. Department of Justice, the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp., and other federal and state regulatory agencies.
“Jessica’s experience in private practice combined with her deep knowledge of the SEC enforcement process further strengthens and diversifies the firm’s Securities Enforcement & Litigation Practice,” said the group’s chair, Beth Boland. “Our attorneys and clients will particularly benefit from her recent government experience, and we are pleased to welcome her back to Foley.”
“The unique experiences and insights that Jessica brings from her time at the SEC in Washington, along with her specialized knowledge of the securities industry, enhances our effectiveness in representing clients before the SEC and PCAOB,” said Scott Fredericksen, managing partner of Foley’s Washington, D.C. office. “Jessica adds significant expertise to the firm’s already deep bench of securities and enforcement litigators and further expands the capabilities of our securities team in D.C.”