The Securities and Exchange Commission announced today that Democratic Commissioner Roel C. Campos intends to leave the agency in a month’s time and return to the private sector.

The departure of Campos, long a champion of investor rights, will come as a blow to advocates of proxy access and other measures deemed friendly to shareholders. Last month, Campos joined fellow Democratic Commissioner Annette Nazareth and SEC Chairman Christopher Cox in voting to propose a draft rule that allowed for director nominations.

Many investors are dissatisfied with the draft rule, arguing the requirement that a shareholder or group of shareholders hold 5 percent of a company’s equity to propose a bylaw allowing for access is too high.

Campos agreed, saying, "I have deep reservations that … the high threshold may make [the rule] useless," and called on investors to "make their views known." He suggested a scalable approach whereby economic thresholds for filing would be lower at larger companies and higher at small and mid-sized issuers. That, investors said, would be far more palatable.

Cox echoed the view of many investors and governance advocates in a press release announcing the Campos' departure. "Commissioner Campos has worked tirelessly, both at home and abroad, for the protection of investors and the betterment of U.S. markets," Cox said. "The nation’s investors have had a true friend in Roel Campos."

Under federal law, two of the SEC's five commissioner seats are to be filled by members of the political party that doesn't control the White House. Accordingly, Senate Democrats will recommend a replacement for Campos to President George W. Bush, who would then nominate the individual for confirmation by lawmakers. Senate Banking Committee members, who typically suggest the nominee, were not immediately available for comment.

Back in 2005, when Nazareth succeeded former Democratic Commissioner Harvey Goldschmid, securities lawyers told ISS that among the names under consideration were Columbia University law professor John Coffee, veteran Washington securities lawyer John Olson, and Joel Seligman, president of the University of Rochester.

Campos, now serving his second term, joined the SEC in August 2002.