Posts Tagged ‘Justice Department’
More Major Justice Dept. News
Corporate compliance officers, drop everything. We have a second speech from the Justice Department about corporate misconduct and compliance programs that needs your immediate attention. Assistant attorney general Kenneth Polite gave the speech in Texas on Friday. It follows the speech that his boss, deputy attorney general Lisa Monaco, gave one day earlier in New…
Read MoreDOJ Pushes Enforcement Reforms
Here we go, compliance officers! The Justice Department has unveiled a sweeping new set of practices for enforcement against corporate misconduct, with an emphasis on taking a stern approach to repeat offenders and giving more rewards to companies that truly embrace a culture of compliance. Deputy attorney general Lisa Monaco announced the enforcement shifts in…
Read More‘Reasonably Designed’ Programs, Part II
Our post last week about the lack of clear standards for a “reasonably designed” compliance program drew lots of comment from compliance professionals — enough that the issue deserves continued exploration, since there’s plenty more to say on the subject. First let’s consider a concrete example of the confusion that could arise here. Imagine your…
Read More‘Reasonable Design’ and CCO Certifications
Today I want to revisit the Justice Department’s plans to have chief compliance officers certify the effectiveness of their compliance programs, to unpack a question that’s been bothering me. When the department says it wants certification that your program is reasonably designed to prevent future violations, what does “reasonable” actually mean? Readers of Radical Compliance…
Read MoreSome Polite Words on Testing
Gather round, corporate compliance professionals. We have another speech from a high-ranking Justice Department official about how compliance programs should work, and as usual these days, the speech is full of clues that are well worth your time and attention. The speech came from Kenneth Polite, assistant attorney general for the Criminal Division, who spoke…
Read MoreUpdates on Antitrust Leniency Program
Useful news for anyone working at a company involved in an illegal cartel or other vast criminal conspiracy: the Justice Department’s Antitrust Division has updated its leniency policy for corporate offenders, with new emphasis on prompt self-disclosure of the violations and remediation to prevent repeat offenses. The Antitrust Division has long allowed the first individual…
Read MoreMore Compliance Program Pointers
Earlier this week we had a post about assistant attorney general Kenneth Polite’s idea to have chief compliance officers certify the effectiveness of their compliance programs. Today I want to revisit the rest of Polite’s speech; aside from that controversial proposal, he offered numerous other thoughts about effective compliance programs worth our attention. Polite began…
Read MoreOn Compliance Officers Certifying Their Programs
Folks, we need to talk about the Justice Department’s new idea to have chief compliance officers certify at the end of a deferred-prosecution agreement that their company’s compliance program is reasonably designed and effective. I am a fan of the Justice Department and strong compliance programs — but can something like this really work in…
Read MoreJustice Dept. Beefs Up Cyber Actions
Just in time for Russia’s invasion of Ukraine and the cyber attacks that inevitably will follow, the Justice Department is promising to use “disruptive action” against cyber criminals, even if those actions jeopardize the department’s chance for future charges and arrests. So said deputy attorney general Lisa Monaco on Thursday, speaking at the annual Munich…
Read MoreA Major Shift in Antitrust Policy
Well this is fortunate timing: one day after we had a post exploring the antitrust challenges around Microsoft’s proposed acquisition of Activision Blizzard, the Justice Department’s top antitrust official gave a speech warning that his division will be more likely to block proposed mergers and less likely to accept settlements that simply restrict post-merger practices. …
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