Compliance Stuff

Executive Summary The U.S. Department of Justice has expanded the Corporate Enforcement and Voluntary Self-Disclosure Policy (the "CEP") to most DOJ components (except for the Antitrust Division). The CEP provides strong incentives for companies to voluntarily disclose corporate misconduct in hopes of obtaining a full declination of criminal charges, or else a non-prosecution agreement ("NPA"), or at least discretionary lenient treatment. The CEP, while offering compelling cooperation incentives, is not a one-size-fits-all panacea, and s maller businesses in particular would be well advised to approach voluntary self-disclosure decisions with appropriate caution, and with the advice of experienced counsel . Introduction On March 10, 2026, the Criminal Division of the U.S. Department of Justice (the "DOJ") announced the extension of its Corporate Enforcement and Voluntary Self-Disclosure Policy (the "CEP") to all DOJ components (with the exception...

In May 2025, the Department of Justice (“DOJ”) announced  changes  to its corporate enforcement policies, including revisions to the Criminal Division’s standards for the  selection and use of monitors . While the new guidance on monitors affirmed that “monitors can be an effective resource to ensure that corporate offenders comply with the terms of a corporate criminal resolution,” the guidance cautioned how “monitors can also impose substantial expense and interfere with lawful business operations.”     According to the guidance, moving forward, monitorships must be “narrowly tailor[ed]…to address the risk of recurrence of the underlying criminal conduct and to reduce unnecessary costs.” To that end, Criminal Division prosecutors are now instructed to consider certain factors when determining whether the imposition of a monitor is appropriate, including: (1) “the nature and seriousness of the conduct” and the risk of recurrence “that would significantly imp...