Bill Baer, Antitrust Division Changes, Washington 2015

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BAER’S BID TO CLEAN UP ANTITRUST DIVISION

In a shocking move, Assistant Attorney General Bill Baer has announced changes to the Antitrust Division’s carve-out practice regarding corporate plea agreements. According to sources, Baer made the decision as part of a thorough review of the division’s approach to corporate dispositions.

The division’s corporate plea agreements have, in the past, included a provision offering non-prosecution protection to employees of the corporation who cooperate with the investigation and whose conduct does not warrant prosecution. However, the division excluded, or carved out, employees who were believed to be culpable, as well as those who refused to cooperate with the investigation, employees against whom the division was still developing evidence, and employees with potentially relevant information who could not be located.

Going forward, the division will continue to carve out employees who have reason to believe were involved in criminal wrongdoing and who are potential targets of the investigation. However, they will no longer carve out employees for reasons unrelated to culpability.

Under the new policy, the names of carved-out employees will not be included in the plea agreement itself, but will instead be listed in an appendix, and filed under seal. This move is seen as a bid to protect the reputations of employees who may have been unfairly targeted.

The division will continue to exclude from the non-prosecution protections of corporate plea agreements any employees whose conduct may warrant prosecution. Baer emphasized that the division will continue to demand the full cooperation of anyone who seeks to benefit from the non-prosecution protection of a corporate plea agreement, and will revoke that protection for anyone who does not fully and truthfully cooperate with division investigations.

The changes to the Antitrust Division’s carve-out practice are set to take effect immediately, and are seen as a major shake-up in the division’s approach to corporate plea agreements.

Mandatory Facts: Defendant: Bill Baer, Assistant Attorney General, Antitrust Division, Washington, 2015. Exact Date: No specific date mentioned. Sentence/Outcome: No specific sentence or outcome mentioned. Dollar Amounts: No dollar amounts mentioned. Charges: Changes to Antitrust Division’s carve-out practice regarding corporate plea agreements. City and State: Washington. Category: White Collar Crime.

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