Companies who submit healthcare claims to private payors, provide financial services to customers, interact with domestic or foreign public officials, or otherwise operate in highly regulated industries should take note that the Department of Justice (DOJ) has taken another significant step in its ongoing effort to encourage new whistleblowers with information about potential corporate criminal
In November 2023, during her keynote address at the American Conference Institute’s international conference on the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA), Acting Assistant Attorney General for the Criminal Division Nicole Argentieri announced that the Fraud Section of the Department of Justice (DOJ) intended to be more active in generating FCPA investigations and prosecutions. Rather than
The U.S. Sentencing Guidelines play an enormous role in federal sentencing. While courts are not required to follow the guidelines, the guidelines remain the starting point for determining a defendant’s ultimate sentence. For that reason, amendments to the guidelines are equally significant.
Recently, the United States Sentencing Commission — the body
At last week’s sentencing of Binance CEO Changpeng Zhao, the government recommended a 36-month prison sentence. Despite the serious nature of Zhao’s crimes – failing to maintain an effective anti-money laundering program, which enabled users to engage in transactions linked to narcotics, terrorist financing and child sex abuse, among others – the court imposed a
On April 17, 2024, the seven-member panel of the U.S. Sentencing Commission voted to adopt an amendment prohibiting judges from using acquitted conduct in applying the federal sentencing guidelines. Previously, and consistent with the decision in United States. v. Watts, 519 U.S. 148, 157 (1997) (per curiam) (holding that “a jury’s verdict of acquittal
On April 15, the U.S. Department of Justice released The Criminal Division’s Pilot Program on Voluntary Self-Disclosures for Individuals (the “Pilot”) designed to encourage individuals to report certain types of criminal activity in return for protection from prosecution. The Pilot follows the DOJ’s previously announced plan to create a new initiative expanding the existing whistleblower
When the Corporate Transparency Act took effect earlier this month, most commentary rightly focused on the obligations it imposed and the measures necessary to comply with its terms. As part of that analysis, commentators routinely noted the act contains criminal provisions providing for fines and imprisonment. From a defense perspective, the creation of new crimes
As we near the Thanksgiving holiday, we wanted to take a moment to thank you — our readers. Eye on Enforcement has been a fun project for the Bradley’s Government Enforcement and Investigations team. But the ultimate goal of any blog is to be read, and we’re grateful to have so many devoted readers. And
The United States Sentencing Commission recently adopted amendments to its Guidelines Manual, and they include some noteworthy changes. The proposed amendments were submitted to Congress on April 27, 2023. Absent Congressional action to the contrary, they will become effective on November 1, 2023.
Of note, the proposed amendments include the addition of Section 4C1.1 –
Last week, the Sixth Circuit and Supreme Court issued opinions on criminal law that could affect trial and sentencing strategy for white collar defendants in regulated industries.
On June 22, 2023, the Sixth Circuit issued an opinion