DOJ announces tougher stance on corporate crime

U.S. Deputy Attorney General Lisa Monaco announced on Thursday that the Department of Justice (DOJ) would be stepping up its investigations into corporate crime.

Monaco shared the DOJ’s new focus in prepared remarks given in a keynote address at the American Bar Association’s (ABA) 36th National Institute on White Collar Crime.

Speaking at the event virtually, Monaco noted that the landscape of enforcement of laws on corporate crime has evolved since she last served in the federal government under former President Obama.

“Corporate crime has an increasing national security dimension — from the new role of sanctions and export control cases to cyber vulnerabilities that open companies up to foreign attacks,” Monaco said, adding that data analytics now plays a larger role in corporate criminal investigations.

Monaco acknowledged that cases against corporate executives are some of the most difficult that the DOJ brings forward and announced that a new squad of FBI agents will be embedded in the department’s Criminal Fraud Section as part of an effort to “surge resources” to prosecutors.

“This team model has a proven track record and is one we’ve used in numerous high-profile cases. As I’ve seen personally, putting agents and prosecutors in the same foxhole can make all the difference, particularly in complex cases,” said Monaco.

As part of the DOJ’s efforts to enforce corporate responsibility, Monaco announced three new actions that the department would be taking.

The first action was that the DOJ would be reinstating guidance that corporations must provide non-privileged information on individuals involved in misconduct in order to qualify for cooperation credit. Monaco noted that prior rules have spared senior executives from misconduct investigations. These new rules are aimed at encouraging more cases against higher-ups.

As part of the second action, new guidance has also been issued to prosecutors on what historical corporate misconduct must be evaluated when considering corporate resolutions, requiring them to consider the “full range” of past misconduct.

The third action the DOJ will be taking is the implementation of independent corporate monitors in corporate resolutions when “trust” in the corporation is limited or questionable.

Monaco also announced the formation of the Corporate Crime Advisory Group, which will be composed of individuals from all parts of the DOJ involved in corporate criminal enforcement.

“It will consider some of the issues I previewed today — like monitorship selection, recidivism and NPA/DPA non-compliance — as well as other issues, like what benchmarks we should use to measure a successful company’s cooperation,” Monaco said of the new advisory group.

“It will also make recommendations on what resources can assist more rigorous enforcement, and how we ensure that individual accountability is prioritized. The advisory group will then develop recommendations and propose revisions to the department’s policies on corporate criminal enforcement,” she added.