Thompson Hine has expanded its Investment Management practice with the addition of two experienced lawyers in its Columbus office, Marc B Minor and Eric E Miller, who will focus on fintech and broker-dealer regulation and fund governance, respectively. Minor and Miller offer clients skilled counsel adept at navigating issues affecting registered and private funds, broker-dealers, investment advisers and business development companies.
JoAnn M Strasser, who heads the Investment Management practice, says: “Marc and Eric bring years of experience and expand our capabilities in a variety of areas, including investment adviser and broker-dealer regulation. Marc understands what the regulators focus on and assists institutional clients in creating compliance practices that withstand scrutiny. Eric’s prior roles at the SEC and as in-house counsel with two large fund complexes and a law firm partner, give him a unique combination of business, legal and regulatory experience that greatly benefits clients. These additions, along with recent additions to our SEC enforcement, shareholder litigation and white-collar practices, allow us to provide holistic, innovative solutions to our financial services clients. We are very pleased to welcome Marc and Eric to the firm.”
At its core, Minor’s practice focuses on helping clients respond to the lightning fast advances in technology that are changing the way business is conducted and the regulations that govern an increasingly electronic world. Minor was one of the industry’s early robo-advisers, and he has been at the forefront of bringing financial technologies to market, including mobile banking apps.
With extensive knowledge of federal and state financial services regulations, Minor helps clients implement compliance programs and regulatory controls and conduct internal investigations and counsels them on preparing for and responding to regulatory inquiries, examinations and enforcement actions by federal and state agencies, state Attorneys General offices and self-regulatory organisations. He also advises on the due diligence, negotiation and execution of mergers and acquisitions of investment advisers and broker-dealers and assists in creating new financial products and services.
Minor has served as Chief of the Investor Protection Bureau in the New York Attorney General’s Office, Chief of the Bureau of Securities in the New Jersey Attorney General’s Office, senior counsel at FINRA and NYSE Regulation, and director and enforcement counsel for the Philadelphia Stock Exchange. Immediately prior to joining Thompson Hine, he was chief compliance officer for an SEC-registered digital adviser, where he oversaw development, implementation, auditing/testing, IT integration and reporting of all policies and procedures; responded to regulatory and corporate examinations and due diligence needs; and advised executive management on legal, strategic and operational issues. He is a founder of the National Association of Securities Professionals Ohio chapter.
Miller has more than 35 years of private practice and in-house legal experience in the financial services industry. Most recently, he served for 17 years as chief legal officer for Nationwide Funds Group, the mutual fund unit of Fortune 100 insurance company Nationwide. In that position, he counselled senior executives and actively represented management teams before the independent board of trustees responsible for overseeing more than 120 funds, which included retail and variable insurance-linked funds with single and multiple sub-advisers, as well as funds of funds. Miller has extensive experience managing and resolving the conflicts of interest inherent in the operation of mutual funds and specialised knowledge of the annual contract renewal process, including the duties and potential liability of the various parties that participate in the process. Prior to joining Nationwide, Miller was a partner with Stradley Ronon Stevens & Young LLP in Philadelphia, where he focused primarily on counselling mutual funds, investment advisers and other service providers to mutual funds concerning their obligations under and compliance with the Investment Company Act of 1940 and the Investment Advisors Act of 1940.
“Thompson Hine has a culture that prizes practice efficiency and it uses sophisticated tools to facilitate and monitor the effective delivery of legal services, which is an innovative and fascinating use of technology to deliver a superior product to clients,” says Minor. “As a forward-thinking firm, Thompson Hine is positioning itself to be where the industry is going, for example, in the robo-adviser area. The financial services industry is rapidly transforming with the growth in tech innovation and the law needs to keep pace. I was looking for a strong platform to offer my clients and Thompson Hine is a great fit.”
Miller adds: “I was impressed with the firm’s significant representation in the mutual fund and advisory industry. Thompson Hine is well-situated with its innovative approach to legal services delivery and, having been on the GC side of the relationship, I appreciate the importance of focusing on predictability, efficiency and transparency.”
