Peter Henning has a very nice analysis of the SEC's settlement with former AIG head honcho Hank Greenberg, in which he explains why the long running saga is now highly unlikely to result in serious penalties for Greenberg.
Under the settlement, Greenberg faces only controlling person liability. He will not be charged with personal misconduct. In light of the SEC's pending SOX Section 304 clawback case against Maynard Jenkins, about which I blogged earlier, the SEC could have gone after Greenberg's incentive compensation under 304 even though it didn't charge him with personal misconduct. One is left to wonder why they went after Jenkins and not Greenberg. (Presumably, there's a statute of limitations on 304 clawback suits, but I'm unaware of one.) Did the SEC threaten to use section 304 as a way of inducing Greenberg to settle? Or did they fear Greenberg would fight back too capably?
