Paul A. Merolla

Paul A. Merolla is General Counsel at BestEx Research. Paul has significant experience with SEC Statutes, regulations and rules, the rules of self-regulatory organizations, and state legal requirements impacting broker-dealers and other financial institutions. He has strong expertise in sales and trading, market structure, capital markets, electronic communications, contracts, books and records maintenance and storage, and supervisory and compliance policies and procedures. He has assisted organizations with corporate governance and public company requirements, provided guidance on strategic transactions and related due diligence, and advised on risk management processes. Paul joins BestEx Research from the LeClairRyan and Murphy & McGonigle law firms, specializing in financial services regulatory law. He has also previously served as General Counsel of Instinet Group Incorporated where he advised the Board of Directors, management, and traders on regulatory requirements relevant to Instinet's trading platforms and helped prepare the company for its initial public offering.

Earlier in his career, he served as Deputy General Counsel for Drexel Burnham Lambert Group, Inc. and senior counsel at Goldman Sachs & Co. He began his legal career at the Shearman & Sterling law firm. Paul has served as President of the SIFMA Compliance and Legal Society and remains active as Past President. He has also been recognized as a New York Super Lawyer. In March 2022, he was awarded the Alfred J. Rauschman Award for his dedicated service to the financial services industry.

Paul is a graduate of Fordham College and Fordham Law School and served as a lieutenant in the United States Army.