securities and exchange commission

May 6, 2015 - Over 100 corporations will receive shareholder resolutions this year calling on them to voluntarily disclose their political spending and lobbying activities. Some companies have already begun disclosing this information voluntarily, including North Carolina-based tobacco giant Reynolds American.

March 28, 2013 - A watchdog group has compiled a list of banking's "dirty dozen" corporate criminals, and Charlotte, N.C.-based Bank of America makes the cut with billions paid out in penalties and settlements for various crimes.

January 14, 2013 - The company is seeking to reduce its civil liabilities under the Clean Water Act by excluding the oil it salvaged from the total amount spilled in the 2010 Deepwater Horizon disaster. Meanwhile, the court has approved a settlement for medical claims related to the spilled oil and dispersants used to break up the slick.

November 29, 2012 - The government's decision to at least temporarily ban BP from federal contracts is a result of not just the Deepwater Horizon explosion and spill, but years of safety problems at the oil giant.

November 16, 2012 - The oil giant has agreed to pay the largest criminal fine in U.S. history, and three of its managers were indicted on charges including felony manslaughter. But the company says it plans to "vigorously defend" itself against pending civil claims, even while its spilled oil still washes ashore and people and sea life continue to suffer.

August 24, 2012 - The Securities and Exchange Commission stood up to intense pressure from the likes of ExxonMobil and the American Petroleum Institute to approve rules that will shine a light on dealings between some of the world's biggest corporations and the poor countries from which they extract vast amounts of wealth.

July 5, 2012 - Fracking proponents traveled to Pennsylvania last year to visit natural gas drilling sites. Their tour guide was Chesapeake Energy -- a company that's now under federal investigation for questionable business practices and price fixing.

April 27, 2012 - Wal-Mart has been accused of bribery in Mexico, but its behavior is far from unique: Many major corporations have been charged under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, a U.S. law passed in response to an oft-forgotten aspect of the Watergate scandal of the 1970s.

March 23, 2012 - A bill originally sponsored by ethics-challenged Congressman Stephen Fincher of Tennessee is being hailed as helping small businesses and workers, but watchdogs warn that it will erode transparency and pave the way for more corporate skullduggery.