Before I relinquish control of the blog this week, I want to take a moment to congratulate Meredith Cross, who will be receiving the William O. Douglas Award at next week’s dinner held by the Association of Securities and Exchange Commission Alumni (ASECA). Since 1992, ASECA has awarded the William O. Douglas Award annually to an SEC alumnus who has contributed to the development of the federal securities laws or served the financial and SEC community with distinction. For those who may not know, William O. Douglas served as Chairman of the SEC from 1937 to 1939 before being appointed to the Supreme Court by President Franklin D. Roosevelt in 1939. Suffice it to say, if there was a Mount Rushmore of federal securities law legends, William O. Douglas would most certainly be memorialized there.

I cannot think of anyone more deserving of the esteemed William O. Douglas Award than Meredith Cross. For the entirety of my career, Meredith has exemplified for me what it means to be the best of the best in our profession. She served at the SEC in two different tours, holding numerous senior positions in the Division of Corporation Finance, including as Director of the Division of Corporation Finance from 2009 – 2013. In private practice, I learned everything I needed to know about being an effective public company counselor from Meredith, as she is the go-to person for so many public companies, particularly when they find themselves in a crisis. Through her work at the SEC and in private practice, Meredith has truly been one of the most influential people in the federal securities laws, and she has always been so generous with her time in sharing her knowledge at our conferences and on our webcasts.

For me personally, I am incredibly fortunate to count Meredith as a friend and mentor. Liz and I recently spoke with Meredith about mentorship on the “Mentorship Matters with Dave & Liz” podcast, and I encourage you to listen to our wide-ranging discussion of the importance of mentorship. I can attest to the fact that mentorship truly does matter, because without Meredith’s inspiration and mentorship, I would not find myself where I am in my career today.

So, with all that said, congratulations to Meredith Cross on receiving the William O. Douglas award!

– Dave Lynn