Law.com Subscribers SAVE 30%

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

To Disclose or Not to Disclose

By Jonathan S. Feld, Jenny Louise Johnson, and BeLinda I. Mathie
August 17, 2003

Recent corporate accounting scandals have brought to light disturbing revelations concerning the business practices of many American companies. New ' and more severe ' penalties for corporate fraud in the Sarbanes-Oxley Act of 2002 have caused companies to step up their internal efforts to detect and prevent wrongdoing.

Companies discovering possible unlawful activity frequently hire outside counsel to perform an internal investigation. The attorneys and their agents, such as accountants, interview key personnel and review business records. Investigators typically generate interview memoranda, chronologies, legal analyses, and summary reports. These investigative documents are shielded from disclosure to third parties by the attorney-client privilege and work product doctrines. See e.g., Better Government Bureau v. McGraw, 106 F.3d 582 (4th Cir. 1997). But see In re Grand Jury Subpoena Dated May 9, 2001, 179 F. Supp. 2d 270 (S.D.N.Y. 2001) (business advice and lobbying not protected).

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
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?

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.

The DOJ's Corporate Enforcement Policy: One Year Later Image

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.

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.

Protecting Innovation in the Cyber World from Patent Trolls Image

With trillions of dollars to keep watch over, the last thing we need is the distraction of costly litigation brought on by patent assertion entities (PAEs or "patent trolls"), companies that don't make any products but instead seek royalties by asserting their patents against those who do make products.