Keith Paul Bishop

Keith Paul Bishop

Keith Bishop works with privately-held and publicly-traded companies on federal and state corporate and securities transactions, compliance, and governance matters. He is highly-regarded for his in-depth knowledge of the distinctive corporate and regulatory requirements faced by corporations in the state of California. While many law firms have a great deal of expertise in federal or Delaware corporate law, Keith’s specific focus on California corporate and securities law is uncommon. A former California state regulator of securities and financial institutions, Keith has decades of experience navigating the regulatory-intensive state’s rules. For companies with substantial operations in California but incorporated elsewhere, Keith is an exceptional resource. He is frequently called in to help with issues arising under California’s “blue sky” and lender laws. An avid writer, Keith’s blog, www.calcorporatelaw.com, covers a diverse collection of California corporate and securities law issues and has served as a valued resource for other attorneys, business executives, judges, and media, nationwide.

Recent Posts

Nevada Supreme Court Refuses To "Blue Pencil" Unreasonable Non-Compete

Nevada, unlike California, applies a reasonableness test to non-compete agreements. Although the Nevada courts haven't identified a specific heuristic to be followed, a covenant not to compete will be found to be unreasonable when in the absence of...

In The DBO's World, Money, Money, Money Transmitters

Many may not realize that the Money Transmitter Division of the California Department of Business Oversight licenses and regulates money transmitters. Money transmitters include issuers of payment instruments (money orders), travelers checks and...

California And Delaware Corporate Law Differ In Many Respects, Including The Authority Of Committees

Both California and Delaware allow the formation of committees of the Board of Directors. Both states also allow these committees to exercise the authority of the board, but with certain exceptions. California, however, has far more exceptions than...

Court Allows An Exhausted FTC To Serve Summons On The California Secretary Of State

The Federal Trade Commission is not pleased with Discountmetalbrokers, Inc. In fact, the FTC is so unhappy with the company that it filed a complaint alleging that the company held itself out as a legitimate seller of gold and silver but would often...

The SEC's Sorcerer's Stone - Changing EBITDA From A Performance Measure Into Liquidity Measure

Recently, Broc Romanek hosted another one of his excellent webcasts. This one covered the SEC's Division of Corporation Finance's recent issuance of several new and modified Compliance & Disclosure Interpretations regarding Non-GAAP financial...

What's With The "U" In Guarantee (Or Should That Be Guaranty)?

Spelling and pronouncing English words can be a challenge.  I've often been puzzled by the word "guarantee".  What's the point of including the unpronounced "u"?  In English, the letter "g" may have either a soft (e.g., as in "legend" and "gerund") or...

The DBO Wants Your Social Security Number, But Is It Legal?

Readers will recall that last year the California legislature created a statutory exemption for finders from the California's registration requirement for broker-dealers (Chap. 743, Stats. 2015). That exemption, codified at Corporations Code Section...

How Much Does Your Banker Make?

In the midst of the Great Depression, The New Yorker published a poem by Ogden Nash entitled "Bankers Are Just Like Anybody Else, Except Richer".  But are bankers really wealthier than hoi polloi? The answer may be found in the Department of Business...

Is Rule 10b-5 The "Mother Of All Litotes"?

Yesterday's post addressed the use of litotes in California's broker-dealer suitability rule.  Litotes can be an effective rhetorical device, but as Judge Frank H. Easterbrook observed, it is also ambiguous.  Associated Randall Bank v. Griffin, Kubik,...