George S. Canellos Named Regional Director of SEC New York Regional Office

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
2009-125

Washington, D.C., June 2, 2009 — The Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Mary Schapiro today announced the appointment of George S. Canellos as Regional Director of the SEC's New York Regional Office, where he will oversee the enforcement and examination operations.

Mr. Canellos will join the SEC from the law firm of Milbank, Tweed, Hadley & McCloy, where he has been a partner in the Litigation Group of the firm's New York office since 2003. From 1994 through 2002, Mr. Canellos was a criminal prosecutor with the U.S. Department of Justice in the U.S. Attorney's Office for the Southern District of New York. He served as Chief of the Major Crimes Unit where he supervised teams of prosecutors responsible for investigating and prosecuting large-scale financial crimes such as bank, insurance and tax fraud, foreign corrupt practices, money laundering, and many other forms of investment fraud.

"George Canellos exemplifies precisely the kind of high caliber professional we are trying to recruit to join our talented New York office staff," said Chairman Schapiro. "I'm confident that he will help the Commission provide rigorous oversight of Wall Street and advance our efforts to restore investor confidence."

While working in the U.S. Attorney's Office, Mr. Canellos also served as Senior Trial Counsel of the Securities and Commodities Fraud Task Force, and was responsible for the prosecution of many individuals and corporations for accounting fraud, investment advisory fraud, insider trading and other violations of the federal securities laws.

Mr. Canellos also served as Deputy Chief Appellate Attorney, one of five supervisors in charge of overseeing the briefing and argument of all criminal appeals before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit.

"George is a remarkably gifted lawyer who has proven throughout his career to possess excellent judgment, superior leadership skills, and an absolute dedication to the twin ideals of aggressive but fair law enforcement," said Rob Khuzami, Director of the SEC's Division of Enforcement. "He is a great candidate to lead the talented staff of the SEC's New York Regional Office."

Lori Richards, Director of the SEC's Office of Compliance Inspections and Examinations, said, "George Canellos brings outstanding experience as a prosecutor and his knowledge of the regulated industry to lead the New York office. Investors in the region will be well-served by his appointment."

Mr. Canellos said, "As a federal prosecutor in New York, I had the privilege to work with examiners and lawyers in the SEC's New York office and appreciated their dedication, skill, and commitment to the public interest. I am very excited to return to public service and lead the office at this extremely challenging time."

Mr. Canellos began his legal career in 1989 as a litigation associate at Wachtell Lipton Rosen & Katz, a New York law firm specializing in securities regulation and corporate control controversies. Mr. Canellos, 44, earned his B.A. degree, magna cum laude, from Harvard College in 1986 and his J.D. from Columbia University School of Law in 1989.

Mr. Canellos is expected to join the SEC's staff in July, succeeding James Clarkson, who has served as the Acting Regional Director on an interim basis since October 2008 and will now return to his post as the Director of Regional Office Operations in the SEC's Division of Enforcement in Washington, D.C.

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