Biography

Commissioner Roel C. Campos was first sworn in as a Commissioner of the Securities and Exchange Commission on August 22, 2002. On June 2, 2005, he was nominated by President George W. Bush for a second term, and was confirmed by the Senate on July 29, 2005.

Commissioner Campos served as the Commission’s liaison to the international regulatory community. He became an influential voice for the convergence of standards and for rational regulation that promotes cross-border transactions. As the Vice Chair of the Technical Committee of the International Organization of Securities Commissions, he developed productive relationships with securities regulators in Europe, Asia, Australia, and Latin America. Commissioner Campos also facilitated the development of international auditing and accounting standards through his work as Chair of the Monitoring Group, which oversees the setting of International Standards of Audit.

Commissioner Campos presided over hundreds of complex enforcement cases, applying the Securities Act of 1933, the Securities Exchange Act of 1934, the Investment Company Act of 1940, and the Investment Advisers Act of 1940. He also extensively participated in the crafting and adoption of all of the SEC’s major regulatory initiatives, including: the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, mutual fund governance and compliance rules, and the new National Market System. In addition, Commissioner Campos has spoken and published extensively in the areas of the implementation of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, corporate governance, director liability, corporate penalties, international accounting and auditing standards, Securities Act reform, SRO and market reform, retirement investment protection, research analyst conflicts, and the internationalization of the securities markets.

Prior to being nominated to the Commission, Commissioner Campos was one of two principal owner-executives of El Dorado Communications, a radio broadcasting company, at its headquarters in Houston, Texas. However, he began his career as an officer in the U.S. Air Force. After attending Harvard Law School, he worked in Los Angeles, California for major law firms as a corporate transactions/securities lawyer and litigator. Beginning in 1985, Commissioner Campos served as a federal prosecutor for five years in the U.S. Attorney's Office in Los Angeles. He successfully prosecuted complex and violent narcotics cartels and, in a celebrated trial, convicted defendants for the kidnapping and murder of a DEA Agent. He also investigated and prosecuted major government contractors for fraudulent conduct. He then returned to private law practice for several years before co-founding El Dorado Communications, Inc.

Commissioner Campos has been recognized as one of the top Latino leaders in America. He is a founding member of the New America Alliance, a Latino initiative for raising awareness of investment opportunities in the Latino sector in the United States.

Commissioner Campos earned his J.D. from Harvard Law School (1979), his M.B.A. from UCLA (1972), and his B.S. from the U.S. Air Force Academy (1971).

Commissioner Campos was born in Harlingen, Texas, of Mexican-American parents. He married his high school sweetheart, Mini Villarreal, who now practices medicine in Washington, DC. They have two boys, David and Daniel.