No jail sentences were imposed on individual defendants convicted in the 1940 Supreme Court case of United States v. Socony Vacuum Oil Co. The individuals were each fined $1,000. In 2014, Romano Pisciotti, an Italian citizen, was indicted under seal for violating Section One of the Sherman Act, seized by Interpol while changing
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DOJ Filed Cert Petition in United States v. Brewbaker
The Department of Justice has filed a cert petition (here) asking the Supreme Court to reverse a Fourth Circuit decision which held that a bid rigging scheme was not a per se violation where the competing bidders also had a vertical relationship. In United States v. Brewbaker, 87
A Modest Proposal—Antitrust Division Special Counsel for Whistleblower
There has been a series of announcements by the Department of Justice of pilot programs designed to lure “insiders” to expose crimes, particularly financial crimes. The first announcement was a new Whistleblower Pilot Program to financially reward whistleblowers in certain circumstances. See DOJ Announces New Whistleblower Pilot Program, Cartel Capers, March 14, 2024. More
DOJ Announces New Whistleblower Incentive Pilot Program—Here’s Hoping the Antitrust Division Gets In On The Action
Deputy Assistant Attorney General Lisa O. Monaco gave the keynote speech at the recent ABA Annual White Collar Institute, and announced a new DOJ Program to incentivize individuals with knowledge of corporate financial crimes to come forward. Video here; Print copy here. Currently, the DOJ is authorized to pay awards for information or assistance
All I Want for Christmas….
All I want for Christmas is a criminal antitrust whistleblower statute. The SEC, CFTC and other enforcement agencies charged with uncovering and prosecuting financial fraud have had another strong year thanks to their whistleblower programs. These agencies sing the praises of their reliance on whistleblowers to uncover illegal schemes. It is not difficult to understand
You Are A Competitor If You Say So–My Disagreement with Fourth Circuit’s Brewbaker Opinion
I have not written a blog post in some time. Been busy, or perhaps a bit lazy, but the Fourth Circuit opinion in United States v. Brewbaker, __ F. 4th __(4th Cir. 12/1/2023), 2023 Westlaw 8286490 caught my attention. The decision represents a surprising departure from black letter law that collusion between competing bidders is
A Practical Look at Why A Criminal Antitrust Whistleblower Statute is Needed
Below is an updated version of a previous blog post I ran about the need for a criminal antitrust whistleblower statute. Revised with new typos:
I have been advocating for some time that cartel whistleblower legislation be passed. Whistleblower legislation has been phenomenally successful for the SEC and other agencies and there is
The Deterrent Dilemma: Individuals or Corporations? It Should Be Both.
At the recent American Bar Association’s National Institute on White Collar Crime, Deputy Attorney General Lisa O. Monaco and Assistant Attorney General Kenneth A. Polite gave major talks outlining further developments inDepartment of Justice’s Corporate Criminal Enforcement Policy. The new policies are designed to further the DOJ goal of rewarding companies for compliance programs
The Rule of Lenity and the Per Se Rule
Last week the Supreme Court decided a case interpreting the Bank Secrecy Act, Bittner v. U.S., 598 U.S. __(2023). Justice Ketanji Brown Jackson joined Justice Neil Gorsuch’s opinion for the majority in a 5-4 decision. The case revolved around what constitutes a violation of the act: Each unreported foreign account? Or: Only the
“I Got A Rock”
In the Charlie Brown Halloween Special, when the Peanuts gang looks into their goody bag, Lucy says: “I got five pieces of candy.” Sally says: “I got a chocolate bar.” Pigpen says, “I got a quarter.” Charlie Brown says: “I got a rock.” As the night went on, all poor Charlie Brown ever got