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Practice Tip: Use Caution When Relying on Governmental Reports
Product failures are often investigated by official agencies. For example, the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (“NHTSA”) will often report on automobile defects as well as traffic accidents; the National Transportation Safety Board (“NTSB”) investigates aviation accidents, and the Coast Guard investigates maritime disasters.
Such reports are usually more extensive than a privately funded investigation. Governmental reports are often heavily relied upon as the basis of a products liability action or defense in those jurisdictions that permit such reports in evidence. In federal cases, such reports are admissible pursuant to FRE 803(8) “Public Records and Reports.” This section makes admissible all records, reports and data in any form by any public officer or agency unless the source of information indicates lack of trustworthiness. Lawyers often make these reports the lynchpin of their entire case. You can imagine the chagrin of any trial lawyer when, on the eve of trial, a motion in limine is granted excluding the report based on untrustworthiness.
The DOJ's Corporate Enforcement Policy: One Year Later
The DOJ's Criminal Division issued three declinations since the issuance of the revised CEP a year ago. Review of these cases gives insight into DOJ's implementation of the new policy in practice.
The DOJ's New Parameters for Evaluating Corporate Compliance Programs
The parameters set forth in the DOJ's memorandum have implications not only for the government's evaluation of compliance programs in the context of criminal charging decisions, but also for how defense counsel structure their conference-room advocacy seeking declinations or lesser sanctions in both criminal and civil investigations.
Use of Deferred Prosecution Agreements In White Collar Investigations
This article discusses the practical and policy reasons for the use of DPAs and NPAs in white-collar criminal investigations, and considers the NDAA's new reporting provision and its relationship with other efforts to enhance transparency in DOJ decision-making.
Bankruptcy Sales: Finding a Diamond In the Rough
There is no efficient market for the sale of bankruptcy assets. Inefficient markets yield a transactional drag, potentially dampening the ability of debtors and trustees to maximize value for creditors. This article identifies ways in which investors may more easily discover bankruptcy asset sales.
A Lawyer's System for Active Reading
Active reading comprises many daily tasks lawyers engage in, including highlighting, annotating, note taking, comparing and searching texts. It demands more than flipping or turning pages.