Thomas A. Sporkin

Thomas Sporkin brings unique experience and insights to the individuals and businesses he represents in matters before the SEC, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC), the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA), the Commodity Futures Trading Commission (CFTC), the Financial Crimes Enforcement Network (FinCEN), and other financial regulators.

Mr. Sporkin has broad experience across all SEC program areas, and continues to monitor key developments at the SEC and other bank and financial regulatory agencies. His practice focuses on compliance counseling, internal investigations, private litigation, and enforcement defense.

He has particular experience with whistleblower matters, having been one of the leaders in launching the SEC’s Whistleblower Office and writing the whistleblower rules called for by the Dodd-Frank Act. Drawing from his experience and insights, he is often called upon to advise financial institutions and public companies on sensitive whistleblower issues.

Before joining Buckley Sandler as a Partner, Mr. Sporkin spent 20 years with the SEC’s Enforcement Division, most recently as Chief of the Office of Market Intelligence (OMI), where he oversaw a multidisciplinary staff of more than 50 senior enforcement attorneys, accountants, market surveillance specialists, and analysts tasked with identifying and investigating conduct that could give rise to violations of the federal securities laws.

Prior to running OMI, Mr. Sporkin co-managed a staff of 20 enforcement lawyers overseeing investigations into the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), financial fraud, insider trading, and manipulative trading. He co-led two cutting-edge initiatives including the launch of the SEC’s Whistleblower Office and the launch of the Consolidated Audit Trail rule writing effort.

With his broad experience, Mr. Sporkin is often invited to comment on new regulations and ongoing regulatory matters on television and in print media. He is an adjunct law professor at the George Mason University School of Law and the Catholic University Columbus School of Law.

He serves on the Law and Advisory Council at the University of Albany’s Institute for Financial Market Regulation, and is a former Co-chair of the Intelligence Subcommittee of the Department of Justice (DOJ) Securities & Commodities Fraud Working Group. He received his J.D. from American University and his B.S. from the University of Maryland.