ABOUT US
LAWYER
FRED WADE
Attorney Frederick B. Wade has maintained a law practice since 1987, which has emphasized the representation of clients with respect to corporate governance matters and proxy solicitations under the federal securities laws. In addition, he has assisted Attorney Marilyn Townsend in a number of matters involving employment law and discrimination, and has represented clients with respect to certain issues arising under the Wisconsin Constitution and the Constitution of the United States.
Prior to entering private practice, Mr. Wade worked as an attorney for the United States Securities and Exchange Commission in Washington, D.C. He served for eight years in positions of increasing responsibility in the Commission’s Office of General Counsel, where he was principally responsible for appellate litigation in cases arising under the federal securities laws, the defense of members of the
Commission and its staff in actions brought in United States District Courts, and advice to the Commission and its staff with respect to the federal securities laws, the accounting provisions of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act of 1976, and certain laws of general application to federal agencies, such as the Administrative Procedure Act, the Freedom of Information Act, and the Sunshine Act.
In the course of his work in the Office of General Counsel, he participated in the writing of briefs in numerous appellate cases that were pending in the United States Courts of Appeals and the United States Supreme Court. He also represented the Commission, and presented oral argument on its behalf, in cases that were litigated in the United States Courts of Appeals.
For an additional three years, from 1981 through 1984, Mr. Wade served as Chief Counsel of the Commission’s Division of Enforcement, and a member of the federal Senior Executive Service that was created by the Civil Service Reform Act of 1978. As Chief Counsel, he participated in drafting the Insider Trading Sanctions Act, conducted a study of enforcement remedies and sanctions, and participated in negotiations with the government of Switzerland, which led to a Memorandum of Understanding that permitted the Commission to obtain access to bank records in certain insider trading cases, despite the existence of bank secrecy laws.
Mr. Wade earned a bachelor’s degree in history from Loyola University of New Orleans, and an M.A. in American History from Tulane University, before coming to Madison in 1966 to study legal and constitutional history under Stanley I. Kutler at the University of Wisconsin. He earned his law degree from the University of Wisconsin Law School in 1972, where he was a member of the Law Review.
Mr. Wade is the author of "The Origin and Evolution of Partial Veto Power," which was published by The Wisconsin Lawyer in March of 2008 (www.wisbar.org), and has served as a guest columnist for The Wisconsin State Journal, The Capital Times, and other state newspapers. He has also spoken often to legal and civic groups, including the Dane County Bar Association, the Legal Association for Women, and the Progressive Roundtable of The Madison Institute.
Mr. Wade has also taught courses in American government at Loyola University of New Orleans and the University of Wisconsin Center in Rock County. He currently serves as a member of the Board of Directors of The Madison Institute and the League of Women Voters of Dane County.