Sorry to repeat myself (sorry, but inevitable in my maintaining this blog for 9 years), but the Justice Department, like other enforcement agencies, will tell everyone what they plan to do and then do it.  Not on individual investigations, but in enforcement priorities, strategies and resources.  Lisa Monaco, the Deputy Attorney General (No. 2 in DOJ), delivered an important speech at the National Institute of...

A supervising ESG Committee has to resolve several basic questions in order to build out its ESG program. What are the company’s ESG risks? How is the company’s ESG program tailored to its ESG risk profile? What kind of information are investors, shareholders and stakeholders demanding as part of a disclosure framework? How will the company collect, assess, and monitor relevant data, and the disclose...

The Justice Department announced the indictment of Mark Forkner, a former Chief Technical Pilot for Boeing for his role in the 737 MAX scandal. Specifically, Forkner is charged with deceiving the FAA’s Aircraft Evaluation Group (“FAA AEG”) relating to Boeing’s 737 MAX airplane and defrauding Boeings U.S.-based airline customers to earn millions of dollars for Boeing. Boeing’s 737 MAX scandal is tragic and disturbing. In January...

Investor demand for companies to provide robust and transparent ESG information is growing quickly.  Investors understand that companies have to develop effective strategies to address ESG risks.  The impact on shareholder price is evident – stakeholders are demanding that companies devote time and attention to ESG issues.  Companies have to respond to this demand. Government regulators are quickly pushing the ESG movement. The European Commission...

ESG – the initials that are transforming corporate missions, purposes and structures, fueled by stakeholder and investor demand.  It is a significant moment in corporate and stakeholder interactions.  Companies recognize the responsibilities but even more importantly, the opportunities, to build a sustainable and financially profitable organization. But there are significant changes that have to occur along with the ESG objective.  I am dubious about the...

Matt Stankiewicz, Partner at The Volkov Law Group, joins us for a post on sanctions compliance in the cryptocurrency industry. Matt can be contacted at [email protected]. In early October, OFAC released a guidance brochure on sanctions compliance, specifically tailored for the cryptocurrency and virtual assets industry.  For seasoned compliance veterans, it ends up reading like a refresher course for sanctions compliance.  While the guidance was...

The Credit Suisse case highlights the significant impact that global corruption and fraud can have on developing economies.  Mozambique’s economy suffered serious harm from the scheme, which started to unravel when the IMF uncovered problems with the financing and accounting for the tuna fishing project. The Mozambican people have suffered real and significant harm directly as a result of this criminal scheme. Additionally, the Credit...

Credit Suisse Group AG (“Credit Suisse”), a global financial institution, and its London-based European subsidiary, Credit Suisse Securities (Europe) Limited (“CSSEL”) resolved a wide-ranging bribery and fraud scheme involving investments and financing arrangements for an $850 million loan for a tuna fishing project in Mozambique. To resolve the violations, Credit Suisse agreed to pay a total of $547 million in penalties, fines and disgorgement as...

The Biden Administration announced its commitment to the global battle against corruption as a new, national security issue. This policy is a significant transformation in the U.S. commitment to the battle against corruption. In this Episode, Scott Greytak from Transparency International USA joins us to discuss the current policy initiatives surrounding the global commitment to fight corruption.

My old adage – when it comes to enforcement initiatives, the government always tells you what they are going to do and then they do it.  It is always baffles me when targets of enforcement actions complain that they did not know the government was going to launch an investigation or enforce the law in a particular manner.  The Justice Department is fairly transparent in...