Katherine Cooper

Partner

I lean on my decades of experience to advise clients on complex challenges.

Katherine advises on the sale and trading of commodities, derivatives, securities, and digital assets. She also represents clients in related regulatory and grand jury investigations, enforcement actions, and criminal prosecutions.

For more than 20 years, Katherine served in leadership roles at the Commodity Futures Trading Commission, swap dealers, and a financial derivatives exchange. At the CFTC, she rose to senior trial attorney within the Division of Enforcement. Subsequently, she served as the Chief Regulatory Officer of NYSE Liffe US, a CFTC-registered futures exchange. Drawing on that background, she offers market participants trusted guidance in navigating the often-confusing legal and regulatory landscape for financial services. She provides clients not only knowledge about applicable law, but also an understanding of the interplay between market participants trading derivatives and financial products. She does more than advise on compliance issues; she helps clients exploit opportunities to launch new products and services created by changes in the law.

Practice Highlights

Financial derivatives

As the Chief Regulatory Officer of NYSE Liffe US, Katherine advised the Board and senior management on the extensive changes made to the Commodity Exchange Act and Commodity Futures Trading Commission's regulations by the Dodd-Frank Act and related rulemakings. She also worked on the launch of a CFTC-registered clearinghouse with an innovative portfolio margining process and oversaw NYSE Liffe US's self-regulatory program.

Compliance leader

Katherine worked in senior compliance roles at Barclays Capital and Citigroup Global Markets, leading teams covering the public sales and trading of fixed income, currencies and commodities assets, as well as equity execution, equity derivatives, preferred securities, and structured products businesses.

Enforcement experience

At the CFTC, Katherine oversaw the investigation and prosecution of enforcement actions involving frauds and other wrongdoing by brokerage houses, commodity trading advisers, commodity pool operators, foreign exchange boiler room, and exchange floor members. Some of these matters led her to conduct joint or parallel investigation with the FBI, U.S. Postal Inspection Service, and New York State Attorney General's Office, as well as foreign government authorities.

Admitted to Practice

New York, 1989
Virginia, Inactive, 1992
District of Columbia, Inactive, 1993
U.S. Court of Appeals 1st Circuit
U.S. Court of Appeals 2nd Circuit
U.S. Court of Appeals 4th Circuit
U.S. District Court Eastern District of New York
U.S. District Court Southern District of New York

Education

J.D., University of Virginia School of Law, 1988
M.A., Philosophy, Columbia University, 1983
B.A., Philosophy & Economics, Columbia College, 1981

Memberships & Affiliations

- Chair, ABA Blockchain Modality Working Group of the Innovative Digital Products and Processes (Subcommittee of the Derivatives Law Committee)
- Co-Vice Chair, ABA Derivatives Law Committee, Innovative Digitized Products and Processes
- New York City Bar Association Futures Law Committee

Professional Recognition

- Named as one of "America's Leading Lawyers for Business" by Chambers USA in Derivatives: Enforcement (Nationwide), 2023

Background

- Shareholder, McGonigle, P.C., 2018-2022
- Chief Regulatory Officer, NYSE Liffe US, 2008-14
- Senior compliance roles, Barclay's Capital, 2004-08
- Head of Institutional Fixed Income Division Compliance, Citigroup Global Markets, 2002-04
- Senior trial attorney, CFTC, 1996-2002
- Associate, Lankler Siffert & Wohl, 1991-96
- Associate, Sullivan & Cromwell, 1988-1991

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