SEC Chair Among Government Lawyers Getting Big Severance Payments
The new chairman of the Securities and Exchange Commission is one of several lawyers joining the administration who are getting big lump-sum payments from their previous employers.
Mary Schapiro comes to the administration from the self-regulatory body for the securities industry that she headed, the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority. An SEC spokesman says Schapiro is getting a package was worth $7.2 million from FINRA’s defined benefit plans, the Washington Post reports. She is also getting $675,033 in deferred compensation from Kraft Foods, where she was a board member, and $750,000 to $1.5 million in deferred compensation from Duke Energy.
The story identifies other lawyers getting big payouts. They include:
• Attorney General Eric Holder, getting $1.3 million in severance from Covington & Burling, according to Judiciary Committee documents.
• Jeh Johnson, nominated to be the Pentagon’s top lawyer, getting a severance of $1 million to $5 million from Paul, Weiss, Rifkind, Wharton & Garrison.
• Thomas Perrelli, nominated for associate attorney general, eligible for an estimated “withdrawal payment” of $768,200 from Jenner & Block.
• Ron Kirk, nominated for U.S. trade representative, getting a $150,000 bonus from Vinson & Elkins, and accelerated vesting of his defined-contribution plan. He also would get payouts from several companies for which he served on corporate boards.
