Corporate Governance

The Eulogy for Diane Sanger at the Securities and Exchange Commission

By J. Robert Brown

I went to the eulogy for Diane Sanger, my former boss from the SEC who passed away last December at the age of 55.  It was held at the SEC's office in Washington at 100 F St. 

Back in the 1980s, I was a staff attorney in the counseling section of the General Counsel's Office.  Diane was, at the time, the Assistant General Counsel over the group that reviewed anything corporate finance related.   This meant takeovers (which, back in the 1980s, was a hot area), insider trading (remember the whole Drexel/Milikin era?), and corporate disclosure (recall Carnation, the case that discussed the materiality of ongoing merger negotiations, even before Basic).  We reported to Elisse Walter (now Commissioner Walter) who was the associate general counsel and then to Dan Goelzer, the General Counsel (who is now on the PCAOB).

Elisse was there and spoke, carrying her own words and those from Dan Goelzer.  Former Commissioner Steven Wallman spoke, as did Ralph Ferarra, a former General Counsel who hired Diane back in 1979.  An assortment of friends and family members also shared some thoughts and observations.  In the audience were a host of other illuminaries (Mary Schapiro attended at least part of the eulogy) and staff of the Commission

The comments were thoughtful and accurate.  Diane spent her career at the SEC, joining almost thirty years ago.  She was razor smart and, as one speaker described, "relentless in her pursuit of the the right answer."  During those three decades, she was singularly devoted to the mission of the SEC and its investor protection goal.  Others described her courage (Diane was injured in college and consigned to a wheel chair) and strength, her sense of humor, her bluntness, and her inability to suffer fools.  It was also clear that for many people (myself included) she was a mentor and/or friend.

There is a plan to create a Diane Sanger speaker series.  When the information is made available, we will put up a post.

Full post as published by The Race to the Bottom on April 17, 2009 (boomark / email).