Law.com Subscribers SAVE 30%

Call 855-808-4530 or email [email protected] to receive your discount on a new subscription.

Parallel Criminal Investigations

By Jonathan B. New and Brian F. Allen
May 02, 2014

As law enforcement authorities have ramped up their investigations of businesses and financial institutions in recent years, companies engaged in civil litigation increasingly find themselves targets of related criminal investigations. Navigating through the competing demands of civil discovery and mounting a criminal defense poses unique challenges and potential landmines for corporate counsel. Among other considerations, confidential materials that would have otherwise been outside of the government's reach, in certain instances, may become subject to subpoena if they are produced in the course of civil discovery.

Almost three years after the Supreme Court declined to resolve the issue, tensions persist among federal courts over whether a civil protective order can in fact safeguard confidential corporate materials from compelled disclosure in a subsequent criminal proceeding. Faced with disparate standards, how litigants choose to conduct civil discovery is more vital than ever to safeguarding confidential materials and protecting a company's ability to defend against a criminal or regulatory investigation. Even before any investigation surfaces, corporate counsel must be cognizant of the risks involved, and pursue a litigation strategy that preserves the company's rights and defenses.

This premium content is locked for Entertainment Law & Finance subscribers only

  • Stay current on the latest information, rulings, regulations, and trends
  • Includes practical, must-have information on copyrights, royalties, AI, and more
  • Tap into expert guidance from top entertainment lawyers and experts

For enterprise-wide or corporate acess, please contact Customer Service at [email protected] or 877-256-2473

Read These Next
Bankruptcy Sales: Finding a Diamond In the Rough Image

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.

Judge Rules Shaquille O'Neal Will Face Securities Lawsuit for Promotion, Sale of NFTs Image

A federal district court in Miami, FL, has ruled that former National Basketball Association star Shaquille O'Neal will have to face a lawsuit over his promotion of unregistered securities in the form of cryptocurrency tokens and that he was a "seller" of these unregistered securities.

Blockchain Domains: New Developments for Brand Owners Image

Blockchain domain names offer decentralized alternatives to traditional DNS-based domain names, promising enhanced security, privacy and censorship resistance. However, these benefits come with significant challenges, particularly for brand owners seeking to protect their trademarks in these new digital spaces.

Why So Many Great Lawyers Stink at Business Development and What Law Firms Are Doing About It Image

Why is it that those who are best skilled at advocating for others are ill-equipped at advocating for their own skills and what to do about it?

A Lawyer's System for Active Reading Image

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.