FIRREA: Expect Substantial Anti-Fraud Enforcement And Compliance Issues

Previously published in Compliance & Ethics Professional

• The Department of Justice has redoubled its efforts to pursue financial crisis matters.
• DOJ has increased its reliance on FIRREA as a means to prosecute financial fraud.
• FIRREA is powerful because it has a broad reach and the preponderance of the evidence standard applies to it.
• FIRREA can be used against any company that transacts with a financial institution.
• Companies should examine how FIRREA impacts their anti-fraud compliance efforts.

Since the financial crisis began, many banks and lenders have been shuttered, and dozens of major financial institutions have collapsed or merged out of existence, including household names like Bear Stearns and Lehman Brothers. The toll of the ongoing financial crisis on the American economy has been well documented. Many have questioned why the federal government has not punished a greater number of individuals and corporations that are perceived to have