On June 6, 2019, the D.C. Court of Appeals appointed Ms. Sara K. Blumenthal, Margaret M. Cassidy, Esquire, and Robert L. Walker, Esquire, to serve three-year terms as members of the Board on Professional Responsibility, effective August 1, 2019. It is such an honor to be appointed to the DC Board of Professional Responsibility. I…
Given my practice as an ethics and compliance lawyer, white-collar defense lawyer, I am getting barraged with questions on the college scandal: Why would someone pay a bribe like this? Why would someone accept a bribe? Where are the people with integrity? Did they not think they would get caught? How did the colleges “let”…
How a company treats employees who bring forth concerns is strong evidence of that company’s propensity to make legal and ethical decisions. A company that welcomes hearing about concerns and issues breeds trust with its employees and other stakeholders like investors and regulators. As a result, employees may share their concerns with an organization before…
Most attorneys are familiar with the basics of the attorney-client privilege, the attorney work product doctrine and attorney ethics rules to maintain client confidentiality. Although these precepts are governed by the law of the jurisdiction, the general protections are similar regardless of the jurisdiction. The attorney-client privilege protects communications between a client and an attorney…
The FBI raid on Michael Cohen’s law offices is the most noteworthy search warrant of 2018 for two reasons. First, because Michael Cohen was the president’s lawyer for years. Second, because it opened the eyes of many, to include some lawyers, to the fact that although there is an attorney-client privilege, it can…
There are times when companies that have Securities Exchange Commission (SEC) reporting requirements AND that perform classified work for the U.S. federal government find themselves in a quandary because… The SEC requires companies to file financial reports in certain instances so the public has the information it needs to make decisions about investing in the…
Question: What do: Cuban cigars A gas line to a heated pool Dinners at a French restaurant A job with a prestigious bank A charitable contribution Have in common? Answer: Each was considered a bribe in a corruption and/or racketeering scheme to improperly influence a government official or government employee to use their position to…
Former Defense Secretary Donald Rumsfeld, when speaking about the Iraq War, took a lot of “writ” for saying there are unknown unknowns and that the unknown unknowns are difficult to manage. No doubt it is a weird statement on its face. But, most folks who manage risk for a living understand that the unknown unknowns…
Do ethics and compliance have a price? Yep, and it varies depending on the scenario. But for this post, I am going to start my calculation at about $4.5 billion dollars. In 2015, Forbes Magazine put Ms. Elizabeth Holmes, founder and CEO of Theranos, on its list of the world’s richest self-made women with a…