SEC Issues Emergency Rules

On Friday, September 19, 2008, the Securities and Exchange Commission announced a trifecta of emergency orders that will remain in effect through October 2, 2008. The orders:

• impose a temporary emergency ban on short selling the securities of 799 financial services companies (http://www.sec.gov/rules/other/2008/34-58592.pdf);
• require certain institutional investment managers to report on new Form SH their short sales of other publicly traded equity securities that are effected on or after Monday, September 22 (http://www.sec.gov/rules/other/2008/34-58591.pdf); and
• temporarily alter timing and volume conditions in order to expand the safe harbor in Rule 10b-18 to companies repurchasing their own shares (http://www.sec.gov/rules/other/2008/34-58588.pdf).