In a recent webinar, L. Allison Charley and Lisa Ollar, both senior principal consultants at ACA Compliance Group (ACA), discussed the results of ACA’s 2019 Alternative Fund Manager Survey pertaining to hedge funds. This article, the first in a two-part series, explores the survey’s demographics and its findings with respect to SEC examination trends, common questions that arise pertaining to an adviser’s code of ethics, surveillance of electronic communications, trade documentation and expense allocations. The second article will review the survey’s findings with respect to insider trading controls adopted by fund managers, cybersecurity, valuation, marketing and custody. See our coverage of ACA’s 2018 compliance survey: “SEC Exam Experience and Insider Trading Controls” (Dec. 13, 2019); and “Fees, Expenses and Custody” (Dec. 20, 2018).