The Dodd-Frank Act

The Dodd-Frank Act implements changes that, among other things, affect the oversight and supervision of financial institutions, provide for a new resolution procedure for large financial companies, create a new agency responsible for implementing and enforcing compliance with consumer financial laws, introduce more stringent regulatory capital requirements, effect significant changes in the regulation of over the counter derivatives, reform the regulation of credit rating agencies, implement changes to corporate governance and executive compensation practices, incorporate the Volcker Rule, require registration of advisers to certain private funds, and effect significant changes in the securitization market. Although the legislation calls for a number of studies to be conducted and requires significant rule-making, we all will be required to be intimately acquainted with the Dodd-Frank Act.

In the pages that follow, we summarize the principal aspects of the Dodd-Frank Act. As lawyers, we would reflexively say that this is a summary, and only a very brief summary at that, and that all of this is qualified in its entirety by reference to our more complete (and far longer) descriptions and analyses….As people who receive lots of summaries, we would say short is usually better.