David C. Mahaffey
David is the managing partner of the Washington, D.C. office, as well as the co-leader of the Investment Management Group. Prior to joining Sullivan & Worcester, David was Special Counsel in the Washington, D.C. office of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP. He previously served as Assistant General Counsel for Legislation and Investment Company and Adviser Regulation at the Securities and Exchange Commission and as Counsel to SEC Commissioner Aulana Peters.
Representative Client Work
- Representing mutual funds, exchange-traded funds, closed-end funds, and business development companies and their independent directors in connection with fund organization, public offerings and operations
- Representing investment advisers and broker-dealers with respect to regulatory matters and law enforcement investigations arising under the federal securities laws
- Advising public companies concerning their status under the Investment Company Act of 1940
News & Publications
- As Managers, Vendors Slough Jobs, Boards Should Be Alert, BoardIQ, Quoted (March 12, 2019)
- Compensation Boosts Tell Familiar Story: Time Is Money, BoardIQ, Quoted (July 17, 2018)
- Sullivan Ranked in the 2018 Edition of The Legal 500 United States, Press Release (May 30, 2018)
- When the Board Wants Mergers but Shareholders Don’t, BoardIQ, Quoted (April 10, 2018)
- Call Me By the Right Name: SEC Probes Blockchain, Cryptocurrency Funds, Ignites, Quoted (March 9, 2018)
- SEC to Fund Admins: No Proof, No NAV, FinOps Report, Quoted (February 2, 2018)
- Board Self-Assessments Back on SEC Exam Request List, BoardIQ, Quoted (November 10, 2017)
- Shops, Fund Boards Lag on Liquidity Rule Prep: CCO Survey, Ignites, Quoted (November 9, 2017)
- Sullivan & Worcester Launches Corporate Governance and Board Advisory Practice, Press Release (November 9, 2017)
- Opinion: When Directors Should Raise or Cut Their Own Pay, BoardIQ (June 20, 2017)
- Sullivan & Worcester Ranked in the 2017 Edition of The Legal 500 United States, S&W Press Release (May 31, 2017)
- Sullivan & Worcester Ranked in the 2017 Edition of Chambers USA, S&W Press Release (May 26, 2017)
- At Harbor Funds, an Embedded Risk Rears Its Head, BoardIQ, Quoted (March 28, 2017)
- When It Comes to 15(c), Passive Is Creeping Into Process, BoardIQ, Quoted (January 31, 2017)
- Judge’s Ruling Questions Attorney-Client Privilege for Mutual Fund Trustees, FinOps Report, Quoted (December 19, 2016)
- SEC hot-button topics that advisers need to know about, Investment News, Quoted (August 26, 2016)
- Sullivan & Worcester Ranked in the 2016 Edition of The Legal 500 United States, S&W Press Release (June 15, 2016)
- Sullivan & Worcester Ranked in the 2016 Edition of Chambers USA, S&W Press Release (May 27, 2016)
- S&W Attorneys Named 2016 Washington, D.C. Super Lawyers, The Washington Post Magazine (April 25, 2016)
- Here’s Our New Fund Strategy (and a Whopping Tax Bill), BoardIQ, Quoted (October 20, 2015)
- Sullivan & Worcester Ranked in the 2015 Edition of The Legal 500 United States, S&W Press Release (June 3, 2015)
- Sullivan & Worcester Ranked in the 2015 Edition of Chambers USA, S&W Press Release (May 26, 2015)
- How Just One Share of Stock Can Ruin a Director's Day, BoardIQ, Quoted (April 21, 2015)
- S&W Attorneys Named 2015 Washington, D.C. Super Lawyers and Rising Star, The Washington Post Magazine (April 16, 2015)
- Sullivan & Worcester Ranked in the 2014 Edition of The Legal 500 United States, S&W Press Release (June 27, 2014)
- S&W Attorneys Named 2014 Washington, D.C. Super Lawyers and Rising Star, Washington DC Super Lawyers Magazine (2014)
- Sullivan & Worcester Ranked in the 2013 Edition of The Legal 500 United States, S&W Press Release (June 4, 2013)
- Hi, I’m Norm From the SEC. Tell Me About Your Job, BoardIQ, Quoted (April 9, 2013)
- Sullivan & Worcester Attorneys Named in 2013 Best Lawyers® (August 22, 2012)
- Sullivan & Worcester LLP Receives Top Rankings in Six Categories in the 2012 Edition of The Legal 500 United States, Press Release (June 1, 2012)
- Chapter 1, "Industry Overview," Mutual Funds: Law and Practice, Law Journal Press (July 2011)
- "Fund Boards Expected to Focus on Sub-Prime Exposure, Derivatives," ACA Compliance Group IM Insight (quoted) (July 2007)
- "Pleading Reform, Plaintiff Qualification and Discovery Stays Under the Reform Act," 51 Business Lawyer 1101 (1996) (co-author)
- "Pleading Standards and Discovery Stays," 10 Insights 9 (February 1996)
- "The SEC’s New Executive Compensation and Shareholder Communications Rules," 27 Beverly Hills Bar Association Journal (Spring 1993) (co-author)
- "Executive Compensation, Disclosure and Shareholder Communications Rules Adopted," Corporate Governance Advisor (October/November 1992) (co-author)
- "Full Disclosure, Market Discipline, and Risk Taking: Rethinking Confidentiality in Bank Regulation," 69 Washington University Law Quarterly 1117 (1991) (co-author)
Seminars & Presentations
- The Fund Board of the Future
Mutual Fund Directors Forum (March 5, 2019) - Director Discussion Series
Sullivan & Worcester Conference Center (October 30, 2017) - Ways to Address Discounts: Gimmicks or Fundamental Solutions?
Investment Company Institute Closed-End Fund Conference, New York, NY (November 4, 2015)
- Advancing Fund Governance (September 2012)
- Mutual Fund Directors Forum, Second Annual Directors' Institute (January 2008)
- Suffolk University Law School, The Global Challenge in Investment Management (April 2002)
- Institute for International Research, Directed Brokerage & Soft Dollars Forum (July 2001, February 2001, July 1999, January 1999)
- Investment Company Institute, Investment Company Directors Conferences (November 1999 and October 1997, October 1996, and October 1995)
- Institute for International Research, Investment Adviser Compliance Forum (July 1997)
- Investment Company Institute, Annual Mutual Funds and Investments Conference (March 1996)
- Glasser LegalWorks, Conference on the Private Securities Litigation Reform Act (January 1996)
- The ABA's Committee on Federal Regulation of Securities, Fall Meeting (November 1995)
- Investment Company Institute, Securities Law Procedures Conference (December 1994)
- American Society of Corporate Secretaries, Mid-Atlantic Chapter, Fall Meeting (October 1993)
- Investment Company Institute, Investment Advisers Conference (July 1993)
- IBC USA Conferences Inc., Tax Exempt Derivatives (November 1992)
- Deloitte & Touche, Program on the SEC Staff Study of the Investment Company Act (July 1992)
