Parallel proceedings are a boon for prosecutors in criminal
investigations. When parallel civil enforcement investigations or
third-party lawsuits occur concurrently with criminal cases, the
government will take full advantage of the information-sharing
opportunities they provide.
The U.S. Department of Justice encourages parallel proceedings,
as reflected in Chapter 27 of its Organizations and Functions
Manual, which advises:
"Department policy is that
criminal prosecutors and civil trial counsel should timely
communicate, coordinate, and cooperate with one another and agency
attorneys to the fullest extent appropriate to the case and
permissible by law, whenever an alleged offense or violation of
federal law gives rise to the potential for criminal, civil,
regulatory, and/or agency administrative parallel (simultaneous or
successive) proceedings."
