Oral Histories Update

The oral history of Anita Nagler is one of 274 oral histories in the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) Historical Society’s digital archives. These are a goldmine for researchers seeking firsthand accounts from SEC leaders and staff about what happened throughout the SEC’s 90-plus-year history. Some oral histories are with leaders from organizations like FINRA and the Public Company Accounting Oversight Board (PCAOB).

The oral histories begin with a January 16, 1967, interview with Carman Blough, the SEC’s first Chief Accountant, and continue through the February 11, 2026, interview with Stephanie Avakian, Co-Director of the Division of Enforcement from 2017 to 2020. We will add more oral histories in 2027.

Search for oral histories on the Digital Archives page.

Here are our newest oral history interviewees, including Anita Nagler, with links to their recordings and transcripts.

February 11, 2026
Stephanie Avakian

Stephanie Avakian began her career in the SEC’s New York Regional Office and returned in 2014 as Deputy Director of the Division of Enforcement, which she went on to lead as Acting Director, Co-Director and Director through 2020. In this interview, she covers her early experience in practice and at the SEC, as well as measures taken to protect retail investors and regulate cybercrime and digital assets. Avakian concludes by discussing enforcement setbacks, including the Lucia and Kokesh cases.

February 10, 2026
Michael Conley

Michael Conley was SEC Solicitor from 2015 to 2025. This interview covers the impact of Madoff and Dodd-Frank rulemaking and pairs his work with successive General Counsels and the changing structure of the Office of General Counsel. He concludes by assessing landmark cases involving economic analysis, disgorgement, and administrative law judges.

November 12, 2025
Anita Nagler

Anita Nagler worked at the SEC from 1980 to 1993. She served as Associate Regional Administrator for Enforcement in the Chicago Regional Office after time in the Los Angeles Regional Office. Nagler begins the interview by discussing the hiring process, then covers the similarities and differences between the two offices, as well as the notable cases each handled. The interview concludes with reflections on Nagler’s administrative experience and the advantages of working for the SEC.

October 1, 2025
Megan Barbero

Megan Barbero was General Counsel from 2023 to 2025. After recounting her experiences in the Justice Department and the House of Representatives, she focuses on the workings of the Office of General Counsel (OGC), particularly in relation to the Commission and Divisions. Barbero covers OGC’s involvement in controversial rulemaking and recent appellate cases in depth.

April 17, 2025
Robert Stebbins

Robert Stebbins was SEC General Counsel from 2017 to 2021. In this oral history, Stebbins discusses court cases that reshaped the agency’s enforcement remedies and the 2018 Supreme Court decision about SEC in-house judges. He also describes investigating the EDGAR hack and leading the Office of the General Counsel through the COVID-19 shutdown.

April 4, 2025
Dan Berkovitz

Dan Berkovitz was SEC General Counsel from November 2021 to January 2023. In this oral history, Berkovitz discusses his government service spanning time at the Commodity Futures Trading Commission as General Counsel and as a Commissioner, at the SEC as General Counsel, as well as his earlier service at the Nuclear Regulatory Commission, the Department of Energy, and as a member of the staff of the U.S. Senate.

April 2, 2025
Simon Lorne

In this oral history, Simon Lorne discusses his time as General Counsel of the SEC from 1993 to 1995, his interest in fostering international cooperation among securities regulators, and his focus on gatekeeper responsibilities for lawyers and accountants.