In his remarks at the New York University School of Law on July
11, 2019, Assistant Attorney General Makan Delrahim announced a
significant policy shift at the US Department of Justice (DOJ) that
would incentivize the adoption of adequate and effective corporate
compliance programs.
Going forward, in deciding on how to resolve criminal charges
against corporations, US DOJ prosecutors will consider "the
adequacy and effectiveness of the corporation's compliance
program at the time of the offense, as well as at the time of the
charging decision." In short, the US DOJ will now give
corporations credit for having an adequate and effective compliance
program, which can lead to a reduction in the penalty sought,
something that was already occurring in other jurisdictions such as
Canada. Having such a compliance program may, in certain
circumstances, also qualify the corporation to a non-prosecution
agreement, notwithstanding the DOJ's general
"disfavor" for such agreements.
