[Federal Register Volume 61, Number 178 (Thursday, September 12, 1996)]
[Notices]
[Pages 48179-48180]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]
[FR Doc No: 96-23311]


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SECURITIES AND EXCHANGE COMMISSION
[Release No. 34-37642; File No. SR-CBOE-96-46]


Self-Regulatory Organizations; Order Approving Proposed Rule 
Change by Chicago Board Options Exchange, Incorporated Related to 
Tolling of the Time Period for Settlement of Disciplinary Cases 
Pursuant to Interpretation and Policy .01(d) Under Exchange Rule 17.8

September 5, 1996.
    On July 23, 1996,\1\ the Chicago Board Options Exchange, 
Incorporated (``CBOE'' or ``Exchange'') filed with the Securities and 
Exchange Commission (``SEC'' or ``Commission'') a proposed rule change 
pursuant to Section 19(b)(1) of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 
(``Act''),\2\ and Rule 19b-4 thereunder.\3\ The proposed rule change 
would amend Interpretation and Policy .01(d) under CBOE Rule 17.8 
(``Interpretation .01(d)'') to allow the Exchange staff thirty days to 
respond to a Respondent's document request before tolling the 
Respondent's settlement period. The proposed rule change also would 
amend Interpretation .01(d) to provide that in no event will a 
Respondent have less than seven days after the receipt of requested 
documents within which to submit an offer of settlement.
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    \1\ The proposed rule change was originally filed with the 
Commission on July 10, 1996. The CBOE subsequently submitted 
Amendment No. 1 to the filing. Amendment No. 1 was a minor technical 
amendment. See Letter from Arthur B. Reinstein, Senior Attorney, 
CBOE, to Karl Varner, Staff Attorney, Division of Market Regulation, 
SEC, dated July 23, 1996.
    \2\ 15 U.S.C. 78s(b)(1) (1988).
    \3\ 17 CFR 240.19b-4 (1993).
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    Notice of the proposed rule change, together with the substance of 
the proposal, was issued by Commission release (Securities Exchange Act 
Release

[[Page 48180]]

No. 37496, July 30, 1996) and by publication in the Federal Register 
(61 FR 40689, August 5, 1996). No comment letters were received. This 
order approves the proposed rule change.
    One purpose of the change to Interpretation .01(d) is to allow the 
Exchange staff thirty days to respond to a Respondent's document 
request before tolling the Respondent's settlement period. Pursuant to 
CBOE Rule 17.8, after a Respondent is served with a statement of 
charges for an alleged rule violation, that Respondent has 120 days to 
attempt to resolve the charges by submitting a written offer of 
settlement. Pursuant to CBOE Rule 17.4(c), within 60 days after a 
statement of charges has been served, a Respondent may make a written 
request for access to all documents concerning the case that are in the 
investigative file of the Exchange except for staff investigation and 
examination reports and materials prepared by the staff in connection 
with such reports or in anticipation of a disciplinary hearing or other 
privileged materials. If a Respondent requests access to the 
investigative file, Interpretation .01(d) currently provides that the 
120-day time period for submitting a written offer of settlement shall 
be tolled during the number of days in excess of seven calendar days 
that it takes staff to provide access to documents in response to the 
Respondent's request.
    The Exchange staff has found that, in most cases, it needs longer 
than seven days to respond to a request. Before providing access to 
documents, Exchange staff must review and organize the investigative 
file to remove privileged documents or information that is not 
discoverable and to remove information that may identify the 
complainant. There have been occasions where Exchange staff has spent 
more than 7 days preparing the investigative file for access, but after 
gaining the benefit of tolling, the Respondent submits an offer of 
settlement without ever reviewing the file. The rule change approved 
today reduces this potential for delay in concluding a disciplinary 
case by limiting a Respondent's ability to toll the 120-day settlement 
period.
    The rule change also amends Interpretation .01(d) to deal with the 
situation where a Respondent has elected to proceed in an expedited 
manner pursuant to Rule 17.3 in an effort to resolve a matter by 
entering into a letter of consent prior to the issuance of charges, but 
is unsuccessful in negotiating a letter of consent.
    Interpretation and Policy .01(b) under Rule 17.8 provides that if a 
Respondent is unsuccessful in an effort to reach agreement with 
Exchange staff upon a letter of consent and charges are issued, any 
time in excess of 30 days spent in attempting to negotiate a letter of 
consent is deducted from the 120-day settlement period, but that in any 
event a Respondent will always have at least 14 days after service of 
charges within which to submit an offer of settlement. The existing 
provision of Interpretation .01(d) tolls the settlement period after 
seven days when a document request has been made. Therefore, if a 
Respondent makes a document request on the first day of the 14-day 
settlement period, that Respondent currently has at least seven days 
remaining of the 14-day settlement period after the documents are 
provided within which to submit an offer of settlement.
    However, Interpretation .01(d) as amended would not toll the 
settlement period until 30 days elapsed from the time that the 
respondent makes a document request. Thus, the settlement period could 
expire even though the Exchange has not yet responded to the document 
request. To assure that the settlement period does not expire before 
the Exchange has responded to the document request, and to further 
assure that a Respondent has a meaningful opportunity to review the 
requested documents, the rule change approved today also amends 
Interpretation .01(d) to provide that in no event will a Respondent 
have less than seven days after the receipt of requested documents 
within which to submit an offer of settlement.
    The Commission believes that the proposed rule change is consistent 
with and furthers the objectives of Section 6(b)(7) of the Act in that 
it improves the Exchange's procedures for the discipline of members and 
persons associated with members. The Commission believes the proposed 
change will make the review process more fair and efficient by reducing 
the potential for delay in concluding a disciplinary case resulting 
from Respondents, or their attorneys, requesting access to documents 
solely to gain an extension of the 120-day settlement period through 
tolling.
    As noted above, the 120 day settlement period is frequently tolled 
under Interpretation .01(d) while Exchange staff responds to the 
Respondent's request for documents. The Commission believes that, by 
tolling the 120 day settlement period only if exchange staff takes more 
than 30 days to respond to a Respondent's request, the proposed change 
provides a Respondent with access to a documents in accordance with 
Rule 17.4(c) while discouraging access requests made for the purpose of 
extending the 120 days settlement period.\4\
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    \4\ The CBOE believes that, under the proposed rule change, 
access requests by Respondents typically should not extend the 120-
day settlement period because the Exchange staff generally will be 
able to respond within 30 days to an access request.
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    The Commission also believes that it is consistent with the 
objectives of Section 6(b)(7) of the Act to amend Interpretation .01(d) 
to provide that in no event will a Respondent have less than seven days 
after the receipt of requested documents within which to submit an 
offer of settlement. The Commission believes that the proposed 
amendment to Interpretation .01(d) will make the review process more 
fair and efficient by continuing to provide a Respondent with a minimum 
of seven days after Respondent's receipt of requested documents within 
which to submit an offer of settlement.
    It is therefore ordered, pursuant to Section 19(b)(2) of the Act, 
that the proposed rule change, SR-CBOE-96-46 be, and hereby is, 
approved.

    For the Commission, by the Division of Market Regulation, 
pursuant to delegated authority, 17 CFR 200.30-3(a)(12).
Margaret H. McFarland,
Deputy Secretary.
[FR Doc. 96-23311 Filed 9-11-96; 8:45 am]
BILLING CODE 8010-01-M