White Collar Crime Prof Blog

In the News & Around the Blogosphere

Amanda Bronstad, NLJ, Dueling pleading argue for and against leniency in bribery case

Carrie Levine, BLT Blog,  Halliburton Amends Disclosure Reports

John Pacenti, Daily Business Review, law.com, Rothstein's Cars, Boats Fetch $5.8 Million at Government Auction

Reuters, NYTimes, A Fine of Millions for a Fugitive Ex-Trader

Amir Efrati, WSJ, Stanford Defense Turns Into Legal Circus - Ponzi Suspect Fires String of Lawyers; 'I Wish I Was Still in It' ; Mary Flood, Houston Chronicle, Yet another lawyer wants to enter Stanford case 

Charles Rabin, Miami Herald, Prosecutors Drop More Charges in Miami Corruption Case

DOJ Press Release,Mortgage Broker Sentenced in Manhattan Federal Court to Seven Years in Jail for Stealing over $6 Million in Mortgage Loan Proceeds

DOJ Press Release, Illinois and Louisiana Attorneys Convicted of Tax and Bank Fraud in Connection with Tax Shelter Transactions and Referral Fee Kickback Scheme

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In the News & Around the Blogosphere

Helene Cooper & Peter Baker, NYTimes,U.S. Opens Criminal Inquiry Into Oil Spill;DOJ Press Release, Attorney General Eric Holder on Gulf Oil Spill

Catherine Whittenburg, Tampa Tribune, Ex-Florida GOP chairman Jim Greer charged with felony theft

Sarah Randag, ABA Jrl Law News Now, Alleged Ponzi Schemer Tells Judge He Doesn’t Know How His Lawyers Have Billed $6M So Far (w/ a hat tip to Ivan Dominguez)

Samuel Rubenfeld, Dow Jones, Nasdaq, US Attorney General Urges OECD to do More to Fight Corruption;Bloomberg BusinessWeek (AP), Holder pushes anti-corruption treaty; DOJ Press Release, Attorney General Holder Delivers Remarks at the Organization for Economic Co-Operation and Development

DOJ Press Release, Alaska Department of Transportation and Public Facilities to Pay Nearly $1 Million for Alleged Clean Water Act Violations

Peter Slevin, Washington Post, Blagojevich trial will be key performance for ex-governor

Jonathan Saltzman, Boston Globe, Wilkerson to plead guilty in corruption case 

Angela Couloumbis, Philadelphia Inquirer,  Preliminary Hearing Advances Perzel Corruption Case to Trial

Jennifer Emily, Dallas Morning News, Special Prosecutor to Examine Corruption Allegations Involving Dallas County Constables

Solomon L. Wisenberg, Letter of Apology, The SEC And Rattner

DOJ Press Release, Former New Jersey Investment Company Executive Charged with Embezzling More Than $600,000 from Company

Cathy Hayes, Irish Central, Ireland to crack down on white-collar crime

DOJ Press Release, Department of Justice Recovers More Than $40 Million in Fraud Proceeds from Foreign Ponzi Scheme

DOJ Press Release, Two Securities Broker-Dealers Indicted for Securities Fraud Scheme in Texas

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DA Vance on Attorney-Client Privilege and Fees

As noted here, New York County District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance issued via his Chief Assistant District Attorney Daniel R. Alonso a Memo pertaining to charging organizations. One aspect caught my eye - privileges and attorney fees.  The Memo states:

"... although the Office will not ordinarily request that an organization waive valid claims of attorney-client privilege or work product protection in order to be credited for its cooperation, where an organization relies on the attorney-client privilege or the work product doctrine to obstruct the investigation, or when it refuses to disclose relevant facts that will further the investigation, these factors will militate against cooperation credit. Similarly, although the Office will not ordinarily be influenced by an organization’s decision to provide for the legal expenses of its directors, officers, employees, or agents, or its decision to enter into an appropriate joint defense agreement, if such practices are made as part of an effort to obstruct, in any way, an investigation or prosecution, or if they result in relevant information’s becoming unavailable to the investigation, they will be considered in any decision whether to prosecute the organization." (footnote omitted)

On a brighter note, the policy does recognize the importance of collateral consequences in making a decision to charge a corporation.

Being corporate counsel seems to be more challenging these days in that the individual needs to be apprised of all the laws in the applicable jurisdictions - which these days can be international.  He or she also has to be familiar with the policy guidelines for the different entities they operate within - which could be many states. 

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Manhattan DA Issues Policy on Prosecution of Businesses & Organizations

The charging policy of the United States Attorney, when it comes to charging corporations, has been controversial in some past years (see here & here). But the U.S. Attorney's Office is not the only office with policy regarding the charging of entities.  In an effort to "offer transparency and uniformity to the business community in understanding the factors the Office looks to in corporate investigations," Manhattan DA Cyrus R. Vance, Jr. issued new guidelines via his chief assistant Daniel R. Alonso. This new policy here, mirrors much of DOJ's policy on whether to charge a corporation.  It then applies New York law to many of these principles.  But the policy does provide for approvals from the DA or Chief Assistant DA in some instances such as financial institutions, political parties, and labor unions.  Alonso's Corporate Charging Policy endorses the use of deferred prosecution and non-prosecution agreements. More details to follow.

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