BCL partner, Richard Reichman writes for Euronews discussing the complex decision of whether or not to self-report corporate wrongdoing.

In the following extract from the article*, which can read in full here, Richard considers the likely impact of self reporting:

'Encouraging the self-reporting of corporate wrongdoing and motivating responsible corporate citizens has a number of significant benefits. When consulting on the introduction of Deferred Prosecution Agreements in 2012, the UK government outlined obstacles to successfully tackling economic crime, such as legal difficulties in proving corporate criminal liability and long, complex adversarial criminal proceedings. Self-reporting means that more offending can be identified, addressed and remedied with greater speed and efficiency. The creation of Deferred Prosecution Agreements has gone some way to promote self-reporting, but greater certainty and more compelling incentives are required to transform corporate behaviour.

Whether or not to self-report corporate offending is a crucial and complex decision. A company needs to consider the various continually evolving risks and incentives applicable to its individual circumstances.

*This article was originally published by Euronews on 29th July 2019.  If you wish to read the full article please visit the Euronews website here.

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