May 27, 1947 - the Supreme Court decided SEC v Howey against a Florida promoter of orange groves and management contracts. As a “joint enterprise with the profits to come from the efforts of others,” Paul Gonson explained, this was a security. The “Howey Test” is still used today.
The year 2022 marks the 60th anniversary of the year – 1962 – in which Isaac “Ike” C. Hunt, Jr. became the second African American to graduate from the University of Virginia School of Law. He also began his first job at the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission that year. After 5 years at the Commission he left and for the next three decades worked in various posts in government, private practice, and academia, including dean of two law schools. He returned to the SEC as Commissioner in 1996 and served in that role until August 2002.
In this new exhibit, we present a retrospective of Hunt’s admirable career through the lens of quotes from his colleagues and from himself. The excerpts are primarily from items in the collection of the Virtual Museum, supplemented with artifacts from two additional public sources: the US Securities and Exchange Commission and the University of Virginia School of Law. All items may be fully accessed through the links provided.
On November 18, 2021 the SEC Historical Society conducted a live broadcast on the evolution of the SEC Solicitor’s Office, focusing especially on the careers of the Commission’s first three Solicitors: David Ferber (Solicitor from 1964 – 1980), Paul Gonson (Solicitor from 1980 – 1999), and Jacob H. Stillman (Solicitor from 1999 – 2014). Panelists included David M. Becker, Michael A. Conley, Daniel L. Goelzer, and Harvey L. Pitt, and was moderated by historian Kenneth Durr.
This program explores the evolution, successes and challenges of the Division’s specialized units over the last decade.