Working at the CFTC Forum

[Anonymous User]

Does anyone on this board have insight into what it’s like working at the CFTC? Unlike the other financial regulators, it seems to get pretty low marks on those government worker engagement surveys, so just generally interested in whether that’s borne out in practice, particularly in enforcement.

More specific topics I’d love to hear about if people have insight:
1. The New York field office in particular.
2. Whether there’s currently any type of student loan repayment help.
3. Whether the new budget helped any of the budgetary issues / in general how difficult it is to deal with budgetary issues.
4. Exit options, including how often people leave enforcement both to elsewhere in government (particularly, SEC, FRB, OCC, and maybe Main Justice Fraud/MLARS), and how easy it is to get back into big law after 5+ years in enforcement (thinking as a counsel with a short runway to partnership type of situation).

[Anonymous User]

I work at a different financial regulator but have some contacts at the CFTC. Much of the reason for employee dissatisfaction there came from Gary Gensler, who hasn't been the chairman since 2014. While many employees liked Gensler's push to be more aggressive, they did not appreciate the insane hours that he demanded, which rivaled biglaw, and his micromanagement. In addition, the CFTC has historically had worse benefits and slightly worse pay than other financial regulators. Since 2014, it has steadily improved, and while it's nowhere near the top of "Best Places to Work in the Federal Government" list, it has made a significant rise since Gensler left and it has also become relevant outside of it's traditional (boring) commodities markets by becoming one of the prime crypto currency regulators.

[Anonymous User]

I work in enforcement at the CFTC. There is some variation in the culture of the offices but New York has a very strong enforcement group I would say job satisfaction is generally pretty high in the Enforcement Division despite the survey. The job has quirks and drawbacks like any other but if you want to have a high level of autonomy to conduct investigations of financial misconduct while getting a very decent salary and benefits the CFTC is a great place to work. As a much smaller enforcement group than at, say, the SEC, CFTC line enforcement lawyers are all called “trial attorneys” and do both investigations and litigations. Overall workload skews to investigations vs. litigations because the Divison just doesn’t litigate that many cases. Because it is smaller there is also (relatively) less bureaucracy at the CFTC than other places and it isn’t unusual for line attorneys to interact directly with Division leadership on a regular basis.

To answer your other questions:

2. There is a program but it is limited to federal loans and there is a cap on total benefits (don’t recall amount). You have to sign a 3 year service agreement to get benefits. I would think of this more like a nice perk, not a deciding factor.

3. There are resource constraints that manifest in a number of ways because of the budget but the increase should help and we are already seeing the effects. That should help morale too. Mostly it is not too difficult to deal with the budget but it does crop up (particularly as you get toward the very end of the fiscal year when money is running out).

4. Because the Division is small sample size is also smaller but it is not unknown to go to other government jobs (DOJ, other agencies). People have also gone to Big Law/boutiques as partners/counsel. Off the top of my head I can’t think of anyone who has gone directly in-house (but could see that working in the right internal investigations role - probably particularly for a bank). I don’t think there is a single answer about how easy the Big Law path is, as it would (presumably) depend on the need of the firm for a CFTC specialist and also whether your prior credentials/experience mean you can plausibly sell yourself as someone who could also handle more general white collar work for the firm.

Personally, I’m mostly extremely happy in the job and definitely recommend it.

[Anonymous User]

Any insights into the hiring process? I saw that the CFTC enforcement division was hiring recently, curious to hear more about it (eg, timeline? credentials the CFTC looks for? etc)

[Anonymous User]

I work in enforcement at the CFTC. There is some variation in the culture of the offices but New York has a very strong enforcement group I would say job satisfaction is generally pretty high in the Enforcement Division despite the survey. The job has quirks and drawbacks like any other but if you want to have a high level of autonomy to conduct investigations of financial misconduct while getting a very decent salary and benefits the CFTC is a great place to work. As a much smaller enforcement group than at, say, the SEC, CFTC line enforcement lawyers are all called “trial attorneys” and do both investigations and litigations. Overall workload skews to investigations vs. litigations because the Divison just doesn’t litigate that many cases. Because it is smaller there is also (relatively) less bureaucracy at the CFTC than other places and it isn’t unusual for line attorneys to interact directly with Division leadership on a regular basis.

To answer your other questions:

2. There is a program but it is limited to federal loans and there is a cap on total benefits (don’t recall amount). You have to sign a 3 year service agreement to get benefits. I would think of this more like a nice perk, not a deciding factor.

3. There are resource constraints that manifest in a number of ways because of the budget but the increase should help and we are already seeing the effects. That should help morale too. Mostly it is not too difficult to deal with the budget but it does crop up (particularly as you get toward the very end of the fiscal year when money is running out).

4. Because the Division is small sample size is also smaller but it is not unknown to go to other government jobs (DOJ, other agencies). People have also gone to Big Law/boutiques as partners/counsel. Off the top of my head I can’t think of anyone who has gone directly in-house (but could see that working in the right internal investigations role - probably particularly for a bank). I don’t think there is a single answer about how easy the Big Law path is, as it would (presumably) depend on the need of the firm for a CFTC specialist and also whether your prior credentials/experience mean you can plausibly sell yourself as someone who could also handle more general white collar work for the firm.

Personally, I’m mostly extremely happy in the job and definitely recommend it.

This is an awesome answer. Thanks so much! (Original anon.)

[Anonymous User]

Any insights into the hiring process? I saw that the CFTC enforcement division was hiring recently, curious to hear more about it (eg, timeline? credentials the CFTC looks for? etc)

CFTC Anon from above. In the last 10 years I think that everyone (or almost everyone) has come from Big Law or a litigation boutique. Prior experience with CFTC matters or even private civil actions under the CEA would definitely be a plus but I don’t think is required. Most people have experience in white collar investigations as well as civil litigation. Generally speaking the more hands-on experience (trials, depositions, conducting internal investigations) the better.

I understand resumes are being reviewed in offices now and I would assume they will start interviewing within the month but that is a guess. I think generally the hiring process consists of one interview but it wouldn’t be impossible for there to be a “callback” if you need to meet someone else. This may vary by office, I’m not sure.

It’s a government bureaucracy so it won’t be lighting fast but I would think decisions would be made within 6 weeks of interviews (but that somewhat depends on how many interviews there are and how widely spaced they are). Then it does take some time for paperwork to be processed before you start. The Division hasn’t really hired in 3-4 years so there is a real need and I’m sure they will try to move relatively quickly.

[Anon346789]

If the anon who works at the CFTC is still around, would you mind giving me a PM? (This is a throwaway account from the OP so I don’t out myself.)

[Anonymous User]

OP I cannot PM you but you can send me an email at [redacted to guard against spambots].

[QContinuum]

OP I cannot PM you but you can send me an email at [redacted to guard against spambots].

Anon, I PM'd OP your email address. I redacted it from your post above to protect you from spambots.

[Anonymous User]

OP I cannot PM you but you can send me an email at [redacted to guard against spambots].

Anon, I PM'd OP your email address. I redacted it from your post above to protect you from spambots.

Thanks, appreciated!

[Anonymous User]

bumping this, does anyone have insight into what CFTC enforcement is like now? Thanks!

[Anonymous User]

I spent my 1L summer in Enforcement at the DC office of the CFTC and my supervisor referred to all the people he was going after for fraud as "motherfuckers"

Best summer ever.