SEC Shortens Waiting Period for the Release of SEC Comment Letters and Company Responses | Practical Law

SEC Shortens Waiting Period for the Release of SEC Comment Letters and Company Responses | Practical Law

The SEC staff announced that it is shortening the waiting period for the release of SEC comment letters and company response letters relating to disclosure filings reviewed by the Divisions of Corporation Finance and Investment Management.

SEC Shortens Waiting Period for the Release of SEC Comment Letters and Company Responses

by PLC Corporate & Securities
Published on 02 Dec 2011 • USA (National/Federal)
The SEC staff announced that it is shortening the waiting period for the release of SEC comment letters and company response letters relating to disclosure filings reviewed by the Divisions of Corporation Finance and Investment Management.
On December 1, 2011, the SEC's Division of Corporation Finance announced that, beginning January 1, 2012, the SEC staff will release SEC comment letters and company response letters relating to disclosure filings no earlier than 20 business days after the review of the disclosure filing is completed. The SEC's Division of Investment Management also made a parallel announcement on December 1, 2011.
Effectively, the waiting period for the release of SEC comment and company response letters via EDGAR will be shortened by roughly a third, from no earlier than 45 calendar days (previously announced in the SEC's May 9, 2005 press release) to no earlier than 20 business days. This shorter waiting period should provide practitioners a more up-to-date window on the SEC staff's current areas of focus.
For more information on the SEC review process, see Practice Notes, Registration Process: SEC Review and SEC Review of Periodic Reports.