Charles Niemeier has 25 years of experience with financial, accounting and auditing matters as an attorney, forensic accountant and regulator.  As an attorney, he has managed and conducted substantial internal and Special Committee investigations, in conjunction with SEC investigations and civil litigation, including the investigation of one of the largest restatements in U.S. corporate history.

In 2000, Mr. Niemeier joined the Securities & Exchange Commission to form the SEC’s Financial Fraud Task Force, where he concurrently held the positions of co-chair of the SEC’s Financial Fraud Task Force and Chief Accountant of the Division of Enforcement.  In these positions, he was responsible for aspects of virtually every financial fraud investigation conducted by the SEC, as well as:

• supervising investigative staff of both Chief Accountant’s office and the SEC’s Financial Fraud Task Force,
• providing advice and assistance to the Division of Enforcement on financial reporting and accounting and auditing matters,
• working with criminal law enforcement agencies in matters involving violations of federal securities laws, 
• developing and conducting training sessions, and
• public outreach.

During Mr. Niemeier’s tenure, the SEC conducted an unprecedented number of financial fraud investigations.  These investigations were also unprecedented in terms of the size of the companies investigated.  In spite of the heavy caseload, he was able to achieve several key improvements in enforcement processes, including the creation of a tracking system for financial fraud investigations, the establishment of procedures for processing of whistleblower complaints, and the reorganization of the assignment system for cases. While at the SEC, he received the Chairman’s Award for Excellence twice, once as a member of the Independence Team and the second time as a member of the Real-Time Enforcement Effort.

After passage of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, the SEC appointed Mr. Niemeier to be a founding Board member of the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (“PCAOB”), where he was instrumental in the development and administration of the organization, serving as the Acting Chairman during the critical first 6 months of the organization, and subsequently as a Board member.  During his tenure, the PCAOB grew from having no operations to an organization with over 600 employees, 14 offices, and an annual budget of over $150 million with oversight of approximately 2,500 accounting firms located in 87 different countries.

While at the PCAOB, Mr. Niemeier was actively engaged in all aspects of the oversight of the audit profession, including rulemaking, standard-setting, inspection, and enforcement. He devoted special attention to international issues and the establishment of the Office of Research and Analysis, which tracks and analyzes risks in financial reporting.         

Mr. Niemeier is a sought-out speaker on matters of regulatory policy involving financial reporting and disclosure, auditing, corporate governance, ethics and enforcement of the securities laws.