Dual 2024 SEC honors recognize decade of landmark FinTech enforcement and innovation at the Securities and Exchange Commission
NEW YORK, 2024 — Law & Forensics LLC congratulates Expert Witness Dr. Morgan B. Ward Doran on receiving two of the Securities and Exchange Commission's most prestigious agency honors in 2024: the SEC Chair's Award for Investor Protection and the SEC Paul R. Carey Agency Award. The dual recognition caps more than two decades of public service at the SEC and the U.S. Department of Justice, during which Dr. Ward Doran pioneered the agency's approach to crypto enforcement, dark-web securities fraud, and artificial intelligence integration. (Source)
The SEC Chair's Award for Investor Protection is among the SEC's highest internal honors, recognizing staff who have made exceptional contributions to the agency's core mission of protecting investors, maintaining fair and orderly markets, and facilitating capital formation. The Paul R. Carey Agency Award similarly honors outstanding contributions to the agency's overall mission and operations. The 2024 awards reflect Dr. Ward Doran's leadership as Senior Special Counsel and Strategy & Innovation Advisor to the Director of the SEC's Office of the Strategic Hub for Innovation and Financial Technology (FinHub), where he led the agency's efforts to integrate generative AI into front-line staff workflows and managed an elite, cross-functional team that advised on all major FinTech matters agency-wide between 2021 and 2025.
Earlier in his SEC career, Dr. Ward Doran also received the SEC Chair's Award for Excellence (2021), the SEC Enforcement Co-Directors' Award (2020), the SEC Agency Award for Excellence in Information Technology (2016), and the SEC Enforcement Director's Award (2007–2015), establishing one of the most decorated enforcement careers in the agency's recent history.
Dr. Ward Doran played a foundational role in building the SEC's digital asset enforcement infrastructure, including designing and running the agency's internal FinTech laboratory, launching the first Ethereum node operated by a U.S. government entity, and bringing the first generative AI-enabled APIs to the SEC. He was also the primary subject-matter expert behind landmark enforcement actions including SEC v. Telegram Group Inc. and SEC v. Trovias.
" Morgan's record at the SEC speaks for itself — multiple Chair-level honors, landmark crypto enforcement cases, and a legacy of institutional innovation that is reshaping how financial regulators engage with blockchain and AI," said Daniel Garrie, Co-Founder of Law & Forensics. "That depth of firsthand government enforcement experience is an extraordinary asset for clients navigating today's rapidly evolving digital asset and securities fraud landscape."
Dr. Ward Doran joined Law & Forensics following his 2025 departure from the SEC. He advises on regulatory enforcement strategy, crypto investigations, securities fraud litigation support, smart contract audits, and expert witness engagements involving digital assets, AI, and complex financial crime.
About Law & Forensics
Law & Forensics LLC is a boutique forensic technology, cybersecurity, eDiscovery, and investigations firm founded by Daniel Garrie. The firm's panel of expert consultants provides forensic analysis, expert witness testimony, incident response, board-level consulting, and regulatory advisory services to law firms, corporations, government agencies, and courts worldwide. For more information, visit lawandforensics.com or call +1 (855) 529-2466.
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