In November 2015 the U.S. Department of Justice released a memo instructing its prosecutors on how to conduct investigations and subsequent indictments of corporate white-collar crime. “The Individual Accountability for Corporate Misconduct Policy” or Yates Memo , as it is known, directs DOJ prosecutors to focus on charging individuals, especially high-level executives and owners, with corporate criminal and/or civil misconduct. This policy refocused government policy to prosecute corporate executives in addition to companies as a whole.
Both the Yates Memo and the U.S. Attorneys’ Manual that it amended significantly expose owners, CEOs, and other corporate officers to the possibility of being named as defendants and/or witnesses in federal criminal and/or civil lawsuits. Corporations and individuals that cooperate with the government receive benefits based on their level of cooperation. As their best defense, employees are encouraged, both by their own attorneys as well as prosecutors, to “point the finger” at top executives.
The government has, in essence, created adversity between owners/top executives and company employees. However, Stone, McGuire & Siegel can help turn this negative into a positive.
In this changed prosecutorial environment, we encourage executives to take proactive steps before the possibility of a government investigation presents itself – in order to preserve their peace of mind, protect their assets and maintain the good reputations they have worked hard to build.
Because it may be too late to protect these after a subpoena has been served, it is imperative that you strengthen your corporate position by implementing a proactive program designed to protect you and, if you choose, your top executives. You can shield yourself and your colleagues against potential government investigations based on false accusations by proactively preventing any false evidence from becoming a weapon against you.
An Owner/Executive Protection Program essentially builds a wall around you personally to prevent an employee from falsely claiming that you were a participant in his or her wrongdoing.
In order to proactively protect owners, CEOs and other corporate officers from false accusations and potential criminal prosecution and/or personal civil liability, it is imperative to analyze “risky” employees to assess their personal intent, including their commitment to maintaining an ethical corporate culture. Stone, McGuire & Siegel can devise a customized plan to protect your executives based on the following steps:
Creating and/or strengthening your company’s legal and ethical corporate culture via dynamic training workshops in executive ethics, conducted by our team or with our affiliate, Chicago-based Second City Works (optional).
Having a preventive program can yield three main benefits:
The Owner/Executive Protection Program is different from a corporate compliance program because it focuses on owners and higher-level executives rather than on the corporation’s policies/procedures and operational-level employees.
A Compliance Program is:
*A program that monitors an organization’s internal processes and procedures to detect, correct and prevent instances of fraud, waste and/or employee malfeasance.
*A program that attempts to implement appropriate corporate internal controls.
The Owner/Executive Protection Program is:
*A program that attempts to protect owners/executives from potential false accusations by employees before they become witnesses in a government investigation.
*A program that (1) identifies people and/or practices that may be identified as vulnerable in a potential government investigation; and (2) works with those individuals and within those practices to ensure that the organization remains cohesive and efficient by building a strong ethical culture.
In essence, the protection plan shields owners/executives with a bullet-proof vest.
Therefore, if you have a compliance program, it should have been monitoring your company’s policies and procedures to assure lawful practices. However, the Owner/Executive Protection Program will shield your company’s owners, executives and other high-level managers in risk areas that could generate false criminal allegations by other employees.
*Please note that as a general rule, even if you have professional liability coverage, D&O policies do not protect you or your executives from criminal acts.
Most corporate compliance attorneys are civil lawyers who lack training in and experience with federal and state criminal prosecutions against corporations and individuals. By contrast, Stone, McGuire & Siegel has proactively investigated potential criminal risks and has implemented proactive protection programs for 30 years.
Our team includes:
We have government training and relationships that give us a unique vantage point from which we can help protect our clients from potential criminal prosecution based on false accusations.
Someone is always listening. Someone is always watching.
YOU PROTECT YOUR COMPANY… WHO PROTECTS YOU?
Please call at 312-659-8441 or email at howard.stone@stonemcguire.