Statement From Securities And Exchange Commission's Office Of Public Affairs

The Securities and Exchange Commission's Office of Public Affairs today issued the following statement:

An article in yesterday's New York Times, in describing a recent groundbreaking SEC enforcement action against JPMorgan Chase & Co. (http://www.sec.gov/litigation/admin/2008/33-8906.pdf), stated that "the S.E.C. said the bank failed to detect wrongdoing at a client for which it was a trustee."

The Commission's Order found that JPMorgan Chase & Co. was a "cause" of the client's violation of certain antifraud provisions of the securities laws. Contrary to the New York Times article's assertion, federal law prohibits the imposition of a financial penalty for such a finding.

The SEC has asked the New York Times to correct its story.