Context: Oral History
Format: Audio

Harvey Pitt – Parts I and II

Date: May 11, 2007

Interviewed By: Dr. Kenneth Durr

Harvey Pitt was the SEC’s 26th chairman (2001–2003), leading the agency through 9/11 and early 2000s accounting scandals such as Enron and implementing post–Sarbanes-Oxley reforms. This oral history was recorded on two dates and the descriptions for each recording are below. Mr. Pitt recorded a second oral history on February 7, 2019 about the founding of the SEC Historical Society.

Harvey Pitt, Part 2 May 12, 2007

Part I: In this oral history, Harvey Pitt reflects on joining the SEC in 1968, serving as a legal assistant to Commissioner Frank Wheat and his appointment as the SEC’s general counsel in 1975 at age 30.

Part II:

In this oral history, Harvey Pitt discusses serving as general counsel from 1975 to 1978 and his return to the SEC as chairman in September 2001. He reflects on the government’s efforts in the aftermath of 9/11 to reopen the nation’s financial markets.