ASIC Penalties Project - An Analysis of Penalties under ASIC Administered Legislation

Overview

The ASIC Penalties Project is the first in-depth study of the practical operation of penalties imposed by courts and other bodies under legislation administered by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (ASIC).

Background

A significant policy debate is unfolding regarding the penalties imposed by courts and other bodies under legislation administered by key economic regulators such as ASIC. The ASIC Penalties Project will conduct a holistic review of such penalties over a 10 year period from 2005 to 2014, to assess whether adequate penalties are available to ASIC and set at an appropriate level. The project will also consider whether the penalties are effectively administered and how ASIC's penalties regime could be improved.

By combining available documentary evidence with surveys and semi-structured interviews, the ASIC Penalties Project will build a penalties database and develop a series of research papers that analyse the theoretical and policy based rationales for the imposition of penalties. These initiatives can inform not only policy development and operational practice regarding ASIC, but also can be informative for other Australian regulators, regulated communities, the judiciary, law enforcement agencies, industry, media, academe and the broader public.

Project Publications

George Gilligan, Andrew Godwin, Jasper Hedges and Ian Ramsay, ‘Penalties Regimes to Counter Corporate and Financial Wrongdoing in Australia – Views of Governance Professionals’ (2017) 11 Law and Financial Markets Review 4

Helen Louise Bird, George Gilligan and Ian Ramsay, 'The Who, Why and What of Enforceable Undertakings Accepted by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission' (2016) 34(7) Company and Securities Law Journal 491

Jasper Hedges and Ian Ramsay, 'Has the Introduction of Civil Penalties Increased the Speed and Success Rate of Directors' Duties Cases? (2016) 34(7) Company and Securities Law Journal 549

Lev Bromberg, George Gilligan and Ian Ramsay, 'Enforcement of Financial Market Manipulation Laws: An International Comparison of Sanctions' (Centre for International Finance and Regulation Working Paper No. 126/2016)

George Gilligan, Andrew Godwin, Jasper Hedges and Ian Ramsay, 'Penalties Regimes to Counter Corporate Misconduct in Australia - Views of Governance Professionals (2017) Law and Financial Markets Review, Forthcoming

Jasper Hedges, Helen Louise Bird, George Gilligan, Andrew Godwin and Ian Ramsay, 'The Policy and Practice of Enforcement of Directors' Duties by Statutory Agencies in Australia: An Empirical Analysis' (2017) 40(3) Melbourne University law Review 905

Lev Bromberg, George Gilligan and Ian Ramsay, 'The Extent and Intensity of Insider Trading Enforcement - An International Comparison' (2017) 17(1) Journal of Corporate Law Studies 73

George Gilligan, Paul Ali, Andrew Godwin and Ian Ramsay, ‘Understanding Penalties Regimes for Corporate Wrongdoing in Australia and Implications for the Teaching of Corporate Law’ (Paper presented at the Corporate Law Teachers Association Annual Conference, Melbourne Law School, The University of Melbourne, 1-3 February 2015)

George Gilligan, Paul Ali, Andrew Godwin, Jasper Hedges and Ian Ramsay, ‘An Analysis of Penalties Under ASIC Administered Legislation: Scoping the Issues’ (Working Paper No 1, Centre for Corporate Law & Securities Regulation, The University of Melbourne, 31 May 2015)

George Gilligan and Helen Bird, ‘Financial Services Misconduct and the Corporations Act 2001’ (Working Paper No 2, Centre for Corporate Law & Securities Regulation, The University of Melbourne, 31 July 2015)

Andrew Godwin, George Gilligan and Tim Howse, Centre for Corporate Law & Securities Regulation, Melbourne Law School, Submission to Treasury, Inquiry into Proposed Industry Funding Model for the Australian Securities and Investments Commission (9 October 2015)

Jasper Hedges, Helen Bird, George Gilligan, Andrew Godwin and Ian Ramsay, ‘An Empirical Analysis of Public Enforcement of Directors’ Duties in Australia: Preliminary Findings’ (Working Paper No 3, Centre for Corporate Law & Securities Regulation, The University of Melbourne, 31 December 2015)

George Gilligan, Jasper Hedges, Paul Ali, Helen Bird, Andrew Godwin and Ian Ramsay, ‘Regulating by Numbers: The Trend Towards Increasing Empiricism in Enforcement Reporting by Financial Regulators’ (2015) 9 Law and Financial Markets Review 260

Helen Bird, George Gilligan, Andrew Godwin, Jasper Hedges and Ian Ramsay, ‘An Empirical Analysis of the Use of Enforceable Undertakings by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission between 1 July 1998 and 31 December 2015’ (Working Paper No 4, Centre for Corporate Law & Securities Regulation, The University of Melbourne, 4 March 2016)

George Gilligan, Jasper Hedges, Katharine Kilroy and Ian Ramsay, Centre for Corporate Law & Securities Regulation, Melbourne Law School, Submission to Senate Economics References Committee, Inquiry into Penalties for Corporate and Financial Misconduct or White-Collar Crime (30 March 2016)

Jasper Hedges, George Gilligan and Ian Ramsay, ‘An Empirical Analysis of Public Enforcement of Directors’ Duties in Australia’ on Harvard Law School Forum on Corporate Governance and Financial Regulation (9 June 2016)

Lev Bromberg, George Gilligan, Jasper Hedges and Ian Ramsay, ‘Sanctions Imposed for Insider Trading in Australia, Canada (Ontario), Hong Kong, Singapore, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States: An Empirical Study’ (Working Paper No 5, Centre for International Finance and Regulation and Centre for Corporate Law and Securities Regulation, the University of Melbourne, 30 June 2016)

Researchers

  • Professor Ian Ramsay
  • Dr George Gilligan, Senior Research Fellow
  • Mr Andrew Godwin, Senior Lecturer
  • Mr Jasper Hedges, Research Fellow

Project Details

Type of Grant

Centre for International Finance and Regulation (CIFR) and the University of Melbourne

Duration

2005-2014

Funds Received

$389,084.00