FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE                                     2000-29

   Meridith Mitchell Named Principal Associate General Counsel

     Washington, DC, March 13, 2000 -- Securities and Exchange
Commission General Counsel David Becker today named Meridith
Mitchell Principal Associate General Counsel.  In her new
position, Ms. Mitchell will be part of the senior management team
that provides legal and policy advice to the Commission.  Ms.
Mitchell, who currently serves as Senior Counselor to the General
Counsel, will assume her new duties immediately.

     SEC General Counsel David Becker said, "I am delighted
Meridith has agreed to become Principal Associate General
Counsel.  Meridith has been a key adviser on many important
Commission initiatives in recent years.  Her sound advice has
been invaluable to the Commission's efforts to evaluate and
address important and novel issues that have impacted our
securities markets.  The Commission is quite fortunate to have
someone of Meridith's caliber contributing to the development of
Commission policies."

     Ms. Mitchell joined the Commission's Office of General
Counsel in 1992 as a staff attorney.  During her tenure, she was
promoted to Special Counsel, then later to Assistant General
Counsel.  In addition, in 1998, Ms. Mitchell served as Counsel to
Commissioner Paul Carey.  Prior to joining the Commission, Ms.
Mitchell was an attorney specializing in corporate and securities
law at the law firm of Wolf, Block, Schorr & Solis-Cohen in
Philadelphia.

     In her eight years at the Commission, Ms. Mitchell has
worked on many of the major policy initiatives that the
Commission has undertaken.  Most recently she was part of the
team that developed the new audit committee disclosure
requirements.  In addition, she was a staff member of the
Commission's Advisory Committee on the Capital Formation and
Regulatory Processes.  Ms. Mitchell has received several awards
while at the Commission, including the 1999 SEC Law and Policy
Award for her contributions on the Glass-Steagall Reform Team and
the 1999 SEC Capital Markets Award for her involvement on the
Earnings Management Team.

     Ms. Mitchell, 37, is a graduate of Columbia Law School and
Oberlin College.

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