Featured Articles:

The Key Elements of an Employee Reporting System (Part II of III)

The Key Elements of an Employee Reporting System (Part II of III)

Corporate leaders know what to say and when to say it – for example, a CEO may state at an employee meeting, “We want to hear your concerns. We want you to bring these concerns forward and we will address them.  We are committed to this as part of ethical culture.” The CEO’s comment is all well and good – it is a positive step...

A Robust Consequence Management System (Part I of III)

A Robust Consequence Management System (Part I of III)

The Department of Justice has laid down a marker – companies would be smart to understand the significant change in ethics and compliance program expectations.  Companies that ignore this new landscape are gambling with their financial security and their reputational value.  Every company that has suffered through a DOJ investigation knows how damaging and draining such an experience can be.  The purpose of an ethics...

Quarterly Trade Compliance Update – July 2023

Quarterly Trade Compliance Update – July 2023

Each quarter, we send many of our clients a quarterly trade compliance update, highlighting important developments over the last few months and summarizing key points for important sanctions programs. Click here to download the quarterly update for July. Below is a summary of events this past quarter: About the document: This handy one-pager is designed to be used by our clients to provide a quick...

U.S. Department of Justice Unseals Indictment against Celsius Network’s Alexander Mashinsky

U.S. Department of Justice Unseals Indictment against Celsius Network’s Alexander Mashinsky

On July 13, 2023, U.S. prosecutors unsealed an indictment against Alexander Mashinsky, the founder and former CEO of beleaguered Celsius Network LLC (“Celsius”) charging him with securities fraud, commodities fraud, and wire fraud.  The DOJ alleges that Mashinsky defrauded customers by misleading them about Celsius’s operations, specifically related to the company’s success and profitability, along with the investments that Celsius ultimately made utilizing customer funds. ...

Episode 283 — Bank of America Hit with $250 Million Penalty for Consumer Account Abuse

Episode 283 — Bank of America Hit with $250 Million Penalty for Consumer Account Abuse

Bank of America joined the club of consumer abusers – Wells Fargo had been the well-established leader of this club and the poster-child for abusive consumer practices.  For years, Bank of America avoided federal enforcement for abuses and could distinguish itself from the poster-child, Wells Fargo.  Bank of America’s conduct is inexplicable. In response to the Wells Fargo scandal, you would have expected that Bank...

Ripple and the SEC Both Claim Wins in Split Court Decision

Ripple and the SEC Both Claim Wins in Split Court Decision

On July 13, 2022, Judge Analisa Torres issued her long awaited ruling on the summary judgment motions in the SEC’s case against Ripple Labs, Inc. (“Ripple”).  The 34-page order provided a win for both the SEC and for Ripple Labs, suggesting that some sales of Ripple’s XRP token constituted securities, but that other sales did not.  Proponents of the cryptocurrency industry celebrated this ruling, as...

Enforceability of Clawback and Compensation Penalty Provisions (Part II of II)

Enforceability of Clawback and Compensation Penalty Provisions (Part II of II)

We often read about lucrative bonus payments made to CEOs and other senior executives. With refinements in corporate governance structures, shareholders and investors are raising concerns over executive bonuses. To bring balance to the equation, companies have to punish executives through clawbacks for misconduct. The Wells Fargo scandal is an example of how clawbacks can be effectively used to punish wrongdoing. In the aftermath of...

How to Build a Compliance Compensation System (Part I of II)

How to Build a Compliance Compensation System (Part I of II)

The Justice Department’s recent revisions to its Corporate Enforcement Program and its Evaluation of Corporate Compliance Programs stressed the importance of compensations systems and consequence management.  The theoretical underpinning of DOJ’s expanded focus is to increase the consequences to individuals who engage in misconduct or supervisors who turn a blind eye to misconduct.  Individuals already face potential criminal prosecution for engaging in misconduct but the...

Episode 282 — The Evolving Partnership: Compliance and Cybersecurity

Episode 282 — The Evolving Partnership: Compliance and Cybersecurity

If you ask corporate board members and senior executives to list their number one risk (other than financial operations), the answer in today’s risk environment is clear – cybersecurity and data privacy.  The rapid elevation of this risk is reflected in weekly headlines announcing ransomware, cyber-attacks and data breaches. Companies that have experienced a cyber-attack are forever changed.  The board and senior executive team quickly...

Navigating Recent BIS Changes to the EAR: A Practical Primer for the Medical Device and Product Industry

Navigating Recent BIS Changes to the EAR: A Practical Primer for the Medical Device and Product Industry

Alex Cotoia, Regulatory Manager and Senior Consultant at The Volkov Law Group, rejoins us for a posting on recent Bureau of Industry and Security’s export control restrictions and the impact on the medical device industry.  Alex can be reached at [email protected]. Among other things, on May 19, 2023, the U.S. Department of Commerce’s Bureau of Industry and Security (“BIS”) issued a sweeping new set of...