President Obama’s nomination of Mary Jo White to head the Securities and Exchange Commission highlights how indispensable whistleblowers can be in prosecuting securities fraud and vindicating his administration’s commitment to reform.
White comes with street cred as a former U.S. attorney famous for prosecuting mobster John Gotti, the Rigas family disgraced for looting Adelphia Communications Corp. and handling a special investigation of financier Marc Rich following President Bill Clinton’s last-day pardon. She gained respect as one of the top lawyers defending Wall Street executives as a partner at Debevoise & Plimpton.
