Symposium Enron and its aftermath: Enron's legislative aftermath: Some reflections on the deterrence aspects of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002

Since Enron's implosion, an astounding string of accounting scandals have stunned the securities markets. Global Crossing, WorldCom, Adelphia, and a host of other companies have seen plummeting share prices and SEC and criminal investigations. Congress's reaction has been equally stunning and surprisingly swift. It passed with near unanimity the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (the "SOA" or the "Act"), and President Bush quickly signed it into law. This Article is not intended as a complete overview of the Act; instead, it focuses primarily on those provisions designed to deter securities fraud. Before analyzing whether Congress is likely to achieve its deterrence goals with these reforms, three more general comments about the Act are in order. Admittedly, none fall into the category of stunningly original insights into the legislative process, but they do appear to be considerations that Congress ignored in its headlong rush to get tough on corporate crime.