There are six principal federal statutes that regulate securities transactions:
A seventh statute, the Public Utility Holding company Act of 1935, ch. 687, 40 Stat. 803 (codified at 15 U.S.C. §§ 79-292 (2002)), was repealed by the Energy Policy Act of 2005, § 1263, (Pub.L. 109-58, 119 Stat. 594, 974).
Additional securities statutes, like the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 (Pub.L. 107-204, 116 Stat. 745 (2002)) and the Dodd-Frank Wall Street Reform and Consumer Protection Act (Pub.L. 111-203, 124 Stat. 1376 (2010)), typically amend the principal federal securities statutes.
For a brief introduction to SEC statutes, see The Laws that Govern the Securities Industry from the SEC. Federal securities statutes are discussed in detail in many of the treatises found in the Treatises page of this guide.
The U.S. Code is available in numerous places, including in print, on subscription databases like Lexis and Westlaw, and freely available online. Some of these resources pull out the securities statutes so they may be searched separately. A selection of these resources is listed below. For a full list of how to access the U.S. Code, see the United States Code research guide.
For historical versions of the U.S. Code, see the Historical US Code page of the United States Code guide.
Legislative histories may help reveal the legislative intent behind a law or better understand the language of an act or statute.
The member database HeinOnline has a multitude of already compiled legislative histories for various securities laws in its U.S. Federal Legislative History Library. Materials may also be available on additional legal databases. For information about researching and compiling legislative histories, see the Federal Legislative History guide.
SEC.gov U.S. Security and Exchange Commission
SEC statutes, rules, and regulations can be found on SEC.gov under the relevant "Division and Office".
United States Code govinfo (GPO)
Coverage begins with 1994. Can Browse by year and title. To search the U.S. Code, click the orange "Search" button, select "Advanced", then under "Refine by Collection" select "United States Code". Search results can be further refined by using the side panel on the search results screen. For additional information and tips, see the About the United States Code page.
Federal securities statutes are located in Title 15.
United States Code Office of the Law Revision Counsel, U.S. House of Representatives
Coverage begins with 1994.
Federal securities statutes are located in Title 15.
U.S. Code Legal Information Institute, Cornell University Law School
Current edition only. See individual title information for currency. Able to browse by title or search by citation. Includes Table of Popular Names.
Federal securities statutes are located in Title 15.
The following member database includes access to the U.S. Code. Members must be logged in to jenkinslaw.org to access this database. This database is also available in the library.
United States Code - Title 15 Commerce and Trade
Available on Fastcase. To search the United States Code, use the "Jurisdictions & Sources" option and make sure either "All Federal" or "United States" is selected. Navigate to the "Primary and Secondary Documents". Under "Statutes", select "U.S. Code" (may be found under Federal > US).
To browse the United States Code, select Browse Libraries > Legislative Materials > United States Code. Annotations provided by Fastcase Authority Check.
Federal securities statutes are located in Title 15.
Historical statutes back to 2000 also available. For access instructions, see the Historical US Code page of the U.S. Code guide.
The following member database includes access to the U.S. Code. Members must be logged in to jenkinslaw.org to access this database. This database is also available in the library.
United States Code - Title 15 Commerce and Trade
Available on HeinOnline. From "Browse Databases by Name", select U.S. Code > United States Code. Federal securities statutes are located in Title 15.
Coverage begins with 1925. Yearly supplements also available (once in the desired edition, the yearly supplements are located below the list of titles). The U.S.C. on HeinOnline is the unannotated publication prepared by the Office of the Law Revision Counsel of the United States House of Representatives. A delay between publication and availability on Hein may be possible.
The following member database includes access to the U.S. Code. Members must be logged in to jenkinslaw.org to access this database. This database is also available in the library.
United States Code Service (U.S.C.S.) - Title 15 Commerce and Trade
Available on LexisNexis Digital Library. Annotations provided by LexisNexis. To search within the U.S.C.S., use the "Search this set" feature.
Federal securities statutes are located in Title 15.
Historical statutes back to 2013 also available. For access instructions, see the Historical US Code page of the U.S. Code guide.
USCS - Title 15 Commerce and Trade
Available on the library's Lexis computers. From the Federal tab, select USCS - United States Code Service > Title 15 Commerce and Trade. Current version only. To search only Title 15, check the box on right side of Title 15.
For historical versions of the U.S.C.S. on Lexis (beginning with 1992), see the Historical US Code page of the U.S. Code guide.
Securities Statutes & Court Rules - Federal
Available on the library's Westlaw computers. From the Practice Areas tab, select Securities Enforcement & Litigation > Statutes & Court Rules. To search all federal securities statutes, check the box next to "Federal". Can also browse by individual principal securities acts. Current version only.
For historical versions of the U.S.C.A. on Westlaw (beginning with 1990), see the Historical US Code page of the U.S. Code guide.
Securities Federal Laws and Regulations
Available on the library's Bloomberg Law computer. From Browse, select Practice Centers > Securities > Securities Home > Federal Laws and Regulations. Click in the box to browse Title 15 of the U.S. Code as well as various securities acts and regulations.
For historical versions of the U.S.C. on Bloomberg Law (beginning with 1994), see the Historical US Code page of the U.S. Code guide.
Securities Acts & Statutes
Available on the library's VitalLaw computer. From Practice Areas, select Securities - All > Acts & Statutes. Current version only. Can search or browse by securities act.
United States Code Annotated (U.S.C.A.) West/Thomson Reuters
Annotations provided by West/Thomson Reuters. Also available on the library's Westlaw computers.
Federal securities statutes are located in Title 15.
United States Code Service (U.S.C.S.) LexisNexis
Annotations provided by LexisNexis. Also available on the LexisNexis Digital Library and the library's Lexis computers.
Federal securities statutes are located in Title 15.