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VIDEO · 19 JUNE 2017

Attorney General Sessions Bars Settlement Payments To Third Parties: RIP SEPs? (Video)

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Earlier this week, Attorney General Sessions issued a brief memorandum barring DOJ from entering into any civil or criminal settlement that would provide for a payment by a defendant to any...

United StatesEnvironment
Seth Jaffe
Seth Jaffe
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Earlier this week, Attorney General Sessions issued a brief memorandum barring DOJ from entering into any civil or criminal settlement that would provide for a payment by a defendant to any non-governmental person that is not a party to the dispute.

Where does this leave the common practice of mitigating enforcement penalties through the implementation of Supplemental Environmental Projects?  Hanging on by a thread, I'd say.

The memo does have two exceptions potential relevant to environmental cases.  First, it only applies to "non-governmental" persons and entities.  Thus, if a SEP can be structured so that a governmental entity receives the benefit of the SEP, that would still seem to be kosher.  Second, the prohibition does not apply to:

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