Practice Expertise

  • Capital Markets and Securities
  • Congressional Investigations
  • Consumer Products
  • Blockchain

Areas of Practice

  • Blockchain
  • Capital Markets and Securities
  • Congressional Investigations
  • Consumer Products
  • ‘34 Act Reporting and Related Matters
  • AI, Metaverse, and Emerging Technologies
  • Blockchain and Digital Assets
  • Corporate
  • Corporate Governance
  • Corporate Governance and Board Advisory
  • EB-5 Immigrant Investor
  • Energy Sector Security Team
  • Environmental Sustainability and Corporate ...
  • Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG)
  • FinTech
  • Marketplace Lending and FinTech
  • Mergers and Acquisitions
  • National Security
  • Private Equity
  • Retail
  • Securities Litigation and SEC Enforcement
  • Sustainability and Corporate Clean Power
  • Sustainability and ESG
  • View More

Profile

Scott brings in-depth knowledge of SEC policies, procedures and enforcement philosophy to each representation.

Scott regularly advises clients across a broad sector of the economy facing sensitive reporting, compliance and enforcement matters before the Securities and Exchange Commission and other capital markets regulators. His practice encompasses a wide range of matters involving the securities laws, mergers and acquisitions, corporate governance, regulatory enforcement, administrative law and public policy. Scott heads Hunton’s ESG practice, and also leads the firm’s working group on blockchain and digital assets. 

Before joining the firm, Scott served on the Executive Staff of the SEC as Counsel to Commissioner Troy A. Paredes from 2008 to 2012. At the SEC, Scott acted as Commissioner Paredes’s liaison to the Commission’s senior staff as well as external constituencies including issuers and other SEC registrants, investors, press, members of Congress, professional firms and trade associations. He advised the Commissioner on all aspects of the federal securities laws and SEC policy across all SEC divisions and offices, focusing especially on the Division of Corporation Finance and the Division of Enforcement. Scott was also involved in financial regulatory reform efforts, including the SEC’s response to the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act as well as the Jumpstart Our Business Startups (JOBS) Act. Prior to the SEC, Scott practiced for ten years with another major law firm in Dallas and Washington.

Scott is frequently quoted by major news sources, including The Washington PostThe Wall Street JournalBloombergLaw360Compliance Week and The National Law Journal. Scott previously served with the legal staff of a Fortune 10 company on a seconded basis, supporting the SEC reporting, compliance, investor relations and corporate secretary functions.

Relevant Experience

  • Represents issuers, investors and underwriters in all aspects of Securities Act and Exchange Act compliance, including public and private offerings of debt and equity securities, structured financing, disclosure and periodic reporting, ESG and sustainability reporting, business combinations and communication with SEC staff.
  • Counsels executives and boards of directors in matters concerning corporate governance and investor relations, including discharge of fiduciary duties, conduct of shareholder meetings, shareholder proposals and preparation of proxy statements, ESG strategy, executive compensation, restricted stock issues, beneficial ownership reporting, stock exchange listing requirements, proxy advisors and shareholder engagement.
  • Advises broker-dealers, investment advisers and other financial intermediaries on compliance with state and federal securities laws, FINRA rules and other applicable market regulations.
  • Counsels leading trade associations in formulating legislative and administrative policy objectives concerning securities regulation and corporate governance.
  • Represents bidders, targets, special committees and significant stockholders in public and private mergers, acquisitions, tender offers, divestitures, Section 363 sales, joint ventures and going-private transactions.
  • In the blockchain and digital asset space, represents entrepreneurs, emerging and established businesses in deploying distributed ledger technology to all facets of their operations, including token and stablecoin offerings, financings involving collateral originated on blockchain, and a broad range of contractual and regulatory compliance issues for FinTech companies, financial institutions, trading platforms and other market intermediaries in connection with their digital asset strategies.
  • While at the SEC, participated in drafting and reviewing SEC rules, interpretive guidance, appellate briefs, congressional testimony and policy statements on matters concerning capital markets and market structure, securities offerings and investment products, corporate governance and disclosure, accounting and auditing standards, climate change, conflict minerals, whistleblowers, the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board and private investment funds.
  • During his tenure with the SEC, counseled Commissioner Paredes through deliberations over all stages of enforcement actions and Commission adjudications concerning a wide variety of liability theories in cases including those involving scienter- and nonscienter-based fraud, insider trading, offering and registration violations, accounting matters and financial restatements, disclosure issues and periodic reporting, attorney and accountant misconduct, structured products, trading practices, Regulation M, Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, asset management, investment advisers, broker-dealers and transfer agents.

Bar Admissions

  • District of Columbia
  • New York
  • Texas

Education
BBA, The University of Texas at Austin, 1995

Areas of Practice

  • Blockchain
  • Capital Markets and Securities
  • Congressional Investigations
  • Consumer Products
  • ‘34 Act Reporting and Related Matters
  • AI, Metaverse, and Emerging Technologies
  • Blockchain and Digital Assets
  • Corporate
  • Corporate Governance
  • Corporate Governance and Board Advisory
  • EB-5 Immigrant Investor
  • Energy Sector Security Team
  • Environmental Sustainability and Corporate Social Responsibility
  • Environmental, Social and Governance (ESG)
  • FinTech
  • Marketplace Lending and FinTech
  • Mergers and Acquisitions
  • National Security
  • Private Equity
  • Retail
  • Securities Litigation and SEC Enforcement
  • Sustainability and Corporate Clean Power
  • Sustainability and ESG

Professional Career

Significant Accomplishments
  • While at the SEC, participated in drafting and reviewing SEC rules, interpretive guidance, appellate briefs, congressional testimony, and policy statements on matters concerning capital markets and market structure, securities offerings and investment products, corporate governance and disclosure, accounting and auditing standards, climate change, conflict minerals, whistleblowers, the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board, and private investment funds.
  • During his tenure with the SEC, counseled Commissioner Paredes through deliberations over all stages of enforcement actions and Commission adjudications concerning a wide variety of liability theories in cases including those involving scienter- and non-scienter-based fraud, insider trading, offering and registration violations, accounting matters and financial restatements, disclosure issues and periodic reporting, attorney and accountant misconduct, structured products, trading practices, Regulation M, Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, asset management, investment advisers, broker-dealers and transfer agents.
  • Represents domestic issuers, investors and underwriters in all aspects of Securities Act and Exchange Act compliance, including public and private offerings, listing requirements, and periodic reporting.
  • Advises foreign issuers, stock exchanges, investors and investment banks in accessing U.S. capital markets, including offerings under Regulation S/Rule 144A, cross-border tender offers and business combinations, rights offerings, SEC registration, and compliance with broker-dealer rules.
  • Represents bidders, targets, special committees and significant stockholders in public and private mergers, acquisitions, tender offers, divestitures, Section 363 sales, joint ventures, and going-private transactions.
  • Counsels C-level executives and boards of directors in matters concerning corporate governance and investor relations, including discharge of fiduciary duties, conduct of shareholder meetings, preparation of proxy statements, executive compensation, restricted stock issues, beneficial ownership reporting, and acted as outside general counsel to clients without an internal legal department.
  • Advises borrowers, lenders and investors in the documentation of commercial loan arrangements, equipment leases, structured financings, financial restructuring matters, and the acquisition and financing of corporate aircraft.


Professional Associations
  • Former Member, Grand Council (National Board of Trustees), Delta Sigma Phi Fraternity, 2005-2014; National Vice President, 2009-2014
  • Former Board Member, Dallas Wind Symphony


Articles

Additional Articles
  • The SEC’s proposed new rules on equity crowdfunding, E-Finance & Payments Law & Policy
  • From Orange Groves to Cryptocurrency: How Will the SEC Apply Longstanding Tests to New Technologies?, Federalist Society Review, Vol 20
  • Blockchain and the Tokenization of Everything, Northern Virginia Council of Technology Magazine
  • Conflict Minerals – FAQs and Recent Developments
  • Tips For Public Co. Financial Controls Amid Growing Scrutiny, Law360
  • How to Feel More Secure About Your Cyber Disclosures, Insights: The Corporate & Securities Law Advisor
  • Why Blockchain’s Impact On The Retail Sector is Growing, Law360
  • The Challenge Of Suing A Defunct Virtual Currency Exchange, Law360
  • Conflict Minerals – Nuts and Bolts
  • Making Sense of the SEC Data Breach, Law360
  • New US securities solicitation rules and crowdfunding, E-Finance & Payments Law & Policy
  • “Staying in Compliance with the SEC’s Latest Rules and Regulations in a Rapidly Changing Environment,” in Inside the Minds: SEC Compliance Best Practices (Aspatore)
  • Blockchain - A Valuable Business Solution, The Voice of Technology – Northern Virginia Technology Council
  • Recent Developments in the Regulations of Bitcoin under State and Federal Securities Laws, Financial Fraud Law Report
  • How Target Company Could Impact Acquirer’s Conflict Minerals Reporting, Deal Lawyer
  • SEC Operations During Federal Government Shutdown, The Texas Lawbook
  • Conflict Minerals – Compliance Guide
  • SEC Proposes Pay Ratio Disclosure Rules, The Corporate Governance Advisor
  • 2022 Marks a Large Step Forward for ESG Disclosure, Retail Industry 2022 Year in Review
  • United States (Chapter), The Financial Technology Law Review, Edition 4
  • SEC Cybersecurity Investigations: A How-To Guide, Westlaw Journal: Securities Litigation & Regulation
  • United States (Chapter), The Financial Technology Law Review, Edition 3
  • 2019 Retail Industry Year in Review
  • ESG Hot Topics
  • 2020 Retail Industry Year in Review
  • M&A Quarterly Reporter – 2021 Q2
  • 2023 SEC Reporting Guide: Annual Reports, Proxy Statements and Other Relevant Considerations
  • 2023 Retail Industry Year in Review
  • Emerging ESG Frameworks: Global Implications and Local Impacts, American Bar Association

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