Sarbanes-Oxley Act

An American federal law, 2002, which substantially revised and strengthened securities laws and their administration in the aftermath of high profile corporate accounting scandals such as that involving Enron.

The act also gave the US Securities and Exchange Commission more supervisory powers over corporations.

It established a Public Company Accounting Oversight Board to supervise the auditing of public companies.

It also purports to hold chief executive officers and chief financial officers accountable for periodic financial reports, imposes new obligations and responsibilities by corporate audit committees, and prohibits corporate loans to officers or directors.

The Sarbanes-Oxley Act also directed the brunt of criminal law to words corporate reporting by creating new offenses and enforcement mechanisms in regards to securities and reporting-related offenses.

References and Further Reading:

• The Practitioner's Guide to the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, 2 volumes, Editors Huber, Keller, Tsoganos and Wolfman, American Bar Association, Business Law section.
• US Securities and Exchange Commission, Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 – Frequently Asked Questions, at sec.gov/divisions/corpfin/faqs/soxact2002.htm
• Addison-Hewitt Associates, A Guide To The Sarbanes-Oxley Act at soxlaw.com