The idea that companies might be able to avoid securities class action litigation through the adoption of bylaws requiring securities law claims to be submitted to arbitration has been around for years.

Traditionally, the SEC has opposed these types of bylaw provisions. However, in an interesting development, on September 17, 2025, the Commission, in a new policy statement approved by a 3-1 vote along party lines, announced that the decision whether or not to “accelerate the effectiveness of a registration statement” will “not be affected” by the presence of provision requiring the arbitration of investor claims arising under the federal securities laws.

This development suggests that in the future IPO investors could find themselves compelled to arbitrate securities law claims rather than being able to file a securities class action, although, as noted below, there is a lot more that is yet to be told on these issues.Continue Reading SEC Revises Policy on Arbitration Provisions in IPO Companies’ Bylaws