Less than two months before president-elect Donald Trump takes office, the Biden Justice Department announced it could be handing corporations a get-out-of-jail-free card, even if they have committed multiple crimes, earned significant profit from their wrongdoing, and failed to self-disclose the misconduct — as long as the companies demonstrate they “acted in good faith” to try to come clean.
“Those that make good faith efforts to self-report, even if they do not qualify for a [full prosecution shield], could still receive substantial benefits,” noted the November 22 update. These potential benefits include agreements where the corporation is not prosecuted and given credit for cooperating with the Justice Department’s investigation.
The Justice Department made its announcement amid a presidential transition in which Biden administration Justice Department officials could be turned out of their government jobs and may seek new employment in the corporate sector — where many of them already worked.
The policy change could help soften federal prosecutions under Trump — including the ongoing investigation of billionaire Trump booster Elon Musk for potential securities fraud.
The new policy also follows the release of annual data showing white-collar prosecutions remain at historic lows.
In 2021 under President Joe Biden, such prosecutions reached a record low of ninety cases and have only moderately increased since then. Federal corporate cases have fallen sharply since 2000, when the Department of Justice prosecuted 304 corporations — around three times the number of corporations that it does today.
Yet according to the Justice Department, promoting transparency around white-collar crimes “encourages…
Auteur: Helen Santoro
