During February, we celebrate Black History Month and honor the many contributions made by members of our Black communities throughout history, while also acknowledging and raising awareness about the deeply inequitable treatment of Black people in the United States. The theme this year is African Americans and the Arts, which celebrates the many impacts Black Americans have had on visual arts, music, cultural movements, and more.
In recognition of Black History Month, we honor Val Dahiya, a partner in our Washington, D.C. office and member of the Capital Markets and Broker-Dealer Compliance + Regulation Practice Groups.
Val has nearly two decades of experience across securities and financial services regulation and compliance of broker-dealers, clearing agencies, securities exchanges, and transfer agents, both in private practice and prominent government agency roles. She is a member of the Nasdaq Exchange Review Council for each of Nasdaq’s six exchanges.
Prior to joining Morrison Foerster, Val chaired the securities trading and markets practice and served as office managing partner at another international law firm. Before that, she served as the Washington, D.C. branch chief in the Office of Trading Practices in the Division of Trading and Markets at the United States Securities & Exchange Commission (SEC), where she provided analysis and recommendations on complex legal and policy issues related to the securities industry, including the application of Exchange Act rules and regulations to emerging areas such as cryptocurrencies and digital assets. Val’s counsel was essential in shaping SEC policies and ensuring their consistent application across the evolving financial landscape.
Prior to her tenure at the SEC, Val worked at the Financial Industry Regulatory Authority (FINRA) (formerly NASD), where she conducted reviews of broker-dealer activities, identified violations of relevant regulations, and made disciplinary recommendations. Her work at FINRA involved analyzing trading activity for irregularities and patterns indicating violative conduct.
Val has received numerous industry recognitions, including being named by DCA Live! as one of the Emerging Women Leaders in Law and receiving the SEC’s Shannon D. Ayers Examination Award of Excellence, as well as the SEC’s Law and Policy Award and the Chairman’s Award for Excellence.
Learn more about MoFo’s Diversity Strategy Committee and our commitment to advancing diverse lawyers.