In 1977, a man by the name of George Lucas released a movie that influenced an entire cinematic generation. I’m sure you know exactly what movie I’m speaking of, and if you don’t, I may or may not be judging you right now. Other than the release of one of the greatest movies of all time, something else with meaning happened that year. 1977 was also the last time the SEC updated its deadline for filing the initial Schedule 13G.

And guess what, if that seems like a very long time ago, just know that 1968 was the last time the filing deadline for Schedule 13D was updated. For context, that was the same year Apollo 8 flew around the moon for the first time.

The Change 
Clearly, a rule update for these forms has been long past due and the SEC recognized this fact. As a result, the Securities and Exchange Commission adopted amendments to modernize the rules governing beneficial ownership reporting. The main change in the rule is the shortening of the deadlines for the initial and amended Schedule 13D and 13G filings. Previously, if you acquired 5% of a company you had 10 calendar days to report the transaction. Now, that time has been reduced to 5 business days.