From 2008 until 2013, Paredes was a Commissioner of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission, having been appointed by President George W. Bush and confirmed by the Senate. At the SEC, Paredes was a strong advocate for small business, for facilitating capital formation, for solving the information overload problem of securities law, and for cost-benefit analysis.

Since leaving government, Paredes has had an active consulting practice, advising a wide-range of entities, including banks, broker-dealers, investment advisors, hedge funds, private equity funds, mutual funds, and exchanges, as well as non-financial services firms. His consulting focuses on financial regulation, compliance, risk management, governance, and regulatory strategy. Paredes also serves as an expert witness and advisor in regulatory enforcement investigations and in private litigation involving securities law and corporate law. And he brings his academic, government, and private sector experience to bear as an independent compliance consultant/corporate monitor.