The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) has selected David Woodcock to become the Director of the Division of Enforcement Selected. Enforcement is the largest division of the SEC.
SEC Chairman Paul Atkins said he was incredibly pleased to have Woodcock step in and lead the division.
“David is a foremost expert in all relevant facets of securities law and has deep institutional knowledge. I look forward to him leading our 1,000+ team of talented enforcement investigators, trial attorneys, accountants, and other professionals,” stated Atkins.
The previous Director Meg Ryan exited the position abruptly last month after only serving 6 months in the role. At the time of her selection, Ryan was a senior judge on the US. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces and a lecturer at Harvard Law School. Ryan had also clerked for Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, a noted conservative member of the court. It was speculated that Ryan wanted to be more aggressive in pursuing enforcement actions which is counter to the current Commission’s intent to pursue broader enforcement actions regarding fraud. The last administration left a trail of enforcement actions with many of them subsequently being dismissed.
It has been reported that Woodcock is committed to executing on Chair Atkin’s vision for the Commission.
Woodcock is currently a partner in the Dallas and Washington, D.C. offices of Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher and chair of the Enforcement Practice Group. He worked in the SEC regional Forth Worth office as Director from 2011 to 2015. He received his BA from Louisiana State University, and his JD from the University of Texas School of Law.
Woodcock starts his position at the SEC on May 4, 2026.