Kimberly N. Chehardy

Kimberly "Kim" Chehardy is a seasoned securities attorney whose practice draws on more than sixteen years of experience at the intersection of financial services regulation, securities enforcement, and enterprise compliance. She advises clients on regulatory compliance, corporate governance, and risk mitigation strategies in litigation and arbitration proceedings, and conducts internal investigations to help clients respond effectively to inquiries from regulators.

Kim brings deep, practitioner-level knowledge of broker-dealer and investment adviser regulation, having served as Chief Compliance Officer for SEC-registered investment advisers and FINRA-member broker-dealers. Her experience encompasses the full lifecycle of broker-dealer compliance — from guiding firms through FINRA new membership applications and continuing membership applications to designing and implementing written supervisory procedures, customer protection frameworks, and enterprise-wide compliance programs. She has managed examinations by the SEC, FINRA, and state regulators, and routinely counsels clients on the interplay between regulatory obligations and business strategy.

Kim's practice is informed by significant experience on the regulatory side. At FINRA, she led reviews and investigations of membership applications for retail and fintech firms, collaborating with FINRA's Office of General Counsel and Enforcement Division on complex matters. Earlier in her career, she served as Special Counsel in the SEC's Division of Trading and Markets, where she played a major role in drafting rulemaking releases and developing regulatory policy governing broker-dealer financial responsibility and reporting requirements. This combination of regulatory and private-sector experience gives her an uncommon perspective on how regulators approach compliance issues and enforcement priorities.

Before joining the firm, Kim advised broker-dealer and investment adviser clients — including hedge funds and private equity funds — at leading global law firms, where she focused on SEC examination preparation, statutory disqualification matters, and regulatory issues arising in mergers, IPOs, and capital markets transactions. She also investigated complex securities matters involving structured products and represented financial institutions in enforcement proceedings. Her compliance work has spanned AML/BSA program leadership, product launch risk counseling, vendor and third-party oversight, and cross-functional coordination with operations, risk management, and business teams.

• Member of the Bureau of Governmental Research

• Department of Justice, New Orleans, LA
• Financial Industry Regulatory Authority, New Orleans, LA
• Securities and Exchange Commission, Washington D.C.
• Davis Polk & Wardwell LLP, Washington D.C.
• Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr LLP, New York, NY