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ARTICLE · 02 AUGUST 2019

Effective Corporate Compliance Programs Now Even More Important In Criminal Antitrust Investigations

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The Department of Justice (DOJ) will now evaluate corporate compliance programs as a factor in determining whether to bring criminal antitrust charges.

United StatesAntitrust/Competition Law
Corey W. Roush
Corey W. Roush
C. Fairley Spillman
C. Fairley Spillman
Charles F. Connolly
Charles F. Connolly
A. Michael Warnecke
A. Michael Warnecke
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Key Points:

  • The Department of Justice (DOJ) will now evaluate corporate compliance programs as a factor in determining whether to bring criminal antitrust charges.
  • New guidance also clarifies how compliance programs factor into the DOJ sentencing recommendations.

On July 11, 2019, Assistant Attorney General Makan Delrahim announced an important change in the Antitrust Division (“Division”) approach to criminal antitrust enforcement that underscores the crucial value of a robust corporate antitrust compliance program. Following this announcement, the Division published for the first time guidance for the evaluation of corporate compliance programs in criminal antitrust investigations. The document: (1) describes the Division’s new policy of evaluating a company’s compliance program in determining whether to bring criminal antitrust charges; and (2) clarifies guidance regarding the impact of compliance programs on sentencing recommendations.

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