On March 3, 2022, at the 37th Annual American Bar Association Criminal Justice Section National Institute on White Collar Crime in San Francisco, Attorney General Merrick B. Garland emphasized that “the prosecution of corporate crime is a Justice Department priority.”In 2021, the U.S. Attorneys’ Offices charged 5,521 individuals with white collar crimes – a 10 percent increase over 2020.In 2021, the Department of Justice’s (DOJ) Fraud Section publicly charged 333 individuals, convicted 296 individuals by plea, tried 23 cases in 18 districts, and secured convictions of 30 individuals at trial.Attorney General Garland made clear that this upward trend will continue: “the Department’s first priority in corporate criminal cases is to prosecute the individuals who commit and profit from corporate malfeasance” since these cases offer the “best deterrent to corporate crime.”
Accordingly, Attorney General Garland announced that DOJ is marshaling its resources to enable it to successfully prosecute corporate crime.These efforts include:
Attorney General Garland described the following efforts as “force-multipliers to our prosecutors and agents” and focused on:
Attorney General Garland also reiterated restored prior DOJ guidance making clear that, to be eligible for any cooperation credit, companies must provide the Justice Department with all non-privileged information about individuals involved in or responsible for the misconduct at issue. “This means all individuals, regardless of their position, status, or seniority, and regardless of whether a company deems their involvement as ‘substantial,’” said Attorney General Garland.
Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite, Jr. recapitulated this point in his keynote remarks at the conference as well: “The carrots and sticks of our corporate enforcement program are attempting to affect, punish, deter or change the decision-making and actions of individuals. When you are asked about remedial action, and you’re asked about corporate leadership and personnel, we are doing so to ensure individual accountability.”
Here are five takeaways from these significant DOJ corporate criminal enforcement announcements: