Former SEC Official Joins Murphy & McGonigle

WASHINGTON, June 7, 2012 /PRNewswire/ -- Today, Murphy & McGonigle, P.C. announced that Matthew B. Comstock has joined the firm as a partner in its Washington, D.C. office. Mr. Comstock brings to the firm substantial experience in securities trading and markets counseling. He has particular experience advising clients with respect to securities trading practices, broker-dealer financial responsibility, and provisions of the Dodd-Frank Act applicable to broker-dealers, including provisions relating to securities-based swap dealers.

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"We are very pleased to have Matt join our team," said James A. Murphy, chairman of Murphy & McGonigle. "Matt's extraordinary breadth and depth of experience in broker-dealer and cutting-edge securities market regulation issues will significantly enhance our ability to serve our financial services clients." Tom McGonigle, managing partner of the firm's D.C. office, added, "Matt's vast knowledge and thoughtful approach to trading and market structure issues will be a tremendous addition to our Regulatory Counseling Practice Group, particularly during this period of rapid regulatory change."

Mr. Comstock served with the SEC from 2000 until 2006 in the SEC's Office of Financial Responsibility. As Branch Chief, Mr. Comstock's responsibilities included broker-dealer financial responsibility, broker-dealer liquidations, securities credit regulation, and compliance with self-regulatory organization rules.

After leaving the SEC, Mr. Comstock re-entered private practice in 2007 with the law firm of Willkie Farr & Gallagher. Mr. Comstock advised clients on a wide variety of issues relating to broker-dealer financial responsibility, including the liquidations of Lehman Brothers, Inc. and MF Global Inc. under the Securities Investor Protection Act of 1970; margin regulations; short selling; regulations governing market manipulation; securities lending; soft dollars; prime brokerage; and market structure. He will join Joe Lombard and Larry Bergmann (both former SEC officials) in Murphy & McGonigle's Regulatory Counseling Practice Group in Washington, D.C.

Murphy & McGonigle serves the litigation, enforcement defense and regulatory counseling needs of firms across the full spectrum of the financial services industry from national banks, broker-dealers, investment advisors and hedge funds to national and international markets and exchanges. The firm includes nine partners who formerly served in the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission.

Murphy & McGonigle operates out of offices in New York, Washington, D.C. and Richmond, Virginia. For more information on the firm, please visit www.mmlawus.com.

SOURCE Murphy & McGonigle, P.C.