Personal liability: What compliance professionals need to know

Abstract

The last decade and a half has seen a rise in the number of corporate enforcement actions and prosecutions following financial crimes compliance failures that have resulted in malfeasance. Relatively few of those corporate actions, particularly criminal actions, have included charges against individuals. That is beginning to change as US regulators and law enforcement bring greater focus to the role of individuals in compliance breakdowns. Recent rule making and policy changes aim to identify and hold accountable individuals involved in corporate wrongdoing. While there is an upside to these new approaches, they also raise a legitimate concern that they will stifle innovation and lead to process redundancy.