SEC Enforcement Chief Alex Oh Resigns After 5 Days Taking the Job

Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) enforcement director Alex Oh stepped down from office after five days on the job.

Alex Oh, who resigned on Wednesday, was known to be the first Asian American woman that was supposed to lead the securities watchdog's enforcement division, Reuters reported.

The SEC made the announcement in a press release.

Alex Oh Resigns From SEC

The reason behind Alex Oh's abrupt resignation was due to potential conflicts of interest from her previous work as a lawyer, according to SEC, and a person who has direct knowledge of the matter.

In an emailed resignation acquired by Bloomberg, Oh noted that development in one of the cases she worked as an attorney has risen. The resignation letter was addressed to SEC's chair, Gary Gensler.

"I have reached the conclusion that I cannot address this development without it becoming an unwelcome distraction," Oh said in the letter.

The abrupt resignation of Oh is a major challenge for Gensler, who is also new to the commission.

Before becoming working at SEC, Oh worked at Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison. One of her corporate clients included oil company Exxon Mobil Corp, which she defended against two-decade-old allegations that it supported killings and tortures in Indonesia.

Reuters reported that Alex Oh decided to resign after U.S. District Court Judge Royce Lamberth, who oversees the case, questioned her conduct during the litigation this week.

On Monday, Lamberth ordered Alex Oh to demonstrate why she should not be sanctioned for alleging that her opposing counsel was disrespectful, agitated, and "unhinged" during a deposition without providing any evidence.

The chairman of Paul, Weiss, Brad Karp, told Reuters that he could not comment on the ongoing litigation. But he added that Alex Oh "is a person of the utmost integrity and a consummate professional."

Melissa Hodgman will return to the role of acting director of the SEC Division of Enforcement after Oh stepped down from her post.

"I am grateful that she [Hodgman] will take on this role again and look forward to working closely with her to fulfill the mission of the SEC," said Oh in a press release.

Oh added that Hodgman is an "exceptional attorney" who has proven to be an effective head of the Enforcement Division.

Hodgman served the same role between January and April this year before Oh was selected for the said position.

Advocacy Groups on Alex Oh's Resignation

Meanwhile, left-leaning advocacy groups have pressured Gensler to appoint someone with fewer ties to firms that the SEC regulates.

The advocacy groups sent a letter to Gensler, expressing concerns over his choice of appointing Oh last April 22.

Chief executive officer of Better Markets, Dennis Kelleher, noted that the commission has repeatedly failed the Americans through selecting Wall Street defense lawyers as the director of enforcement.

"Oh's resignation is an opportunity to break the SEC's corrupting practice of hiring Wall Street defense lawyers," the group said as reported by Bloomberg.

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