Fraud and White Collar Crime: Beyond Borders
UK businesses face unprecedented risks in the fast-track extradition arrangements that now exist between the US and the UK. Alistair Graham and Sona Ganatra report on the Department of Justice's pursuit of foreign business
May 31, 2006 at 08:03 PM
7 minute read
Although many UK companies have been subject to the requirements imposed by Sarbanes-Oxley and other US legislation for some time, UK plc is increasingly feeling the heat as US authorities have aggressively turned their attention to the UK. In addition, new fast-track extradition arrangements between the US and the UK mean the US is now pursuing cases that it would formerly have decided not to.
The new extradition arrangements in particular have come in for heavy flak in the UK, with protests being voiced by business leaders, opposition politicians, human rights groups and ordinary citizens. A number of high-profile extradition cases are currently being fought in the courts, in what is turning into one of the hottest issues for UK businesses in recent years. Once extradited, UK citizens face a judicial system where plea bargaining is prevalent, conviction rates, in some cases, exceed 90%, and sentences are becoming increasingly severe.
Whatever the individual merits of any case, the fact is that the US authorities are unlikely to change their aggressive extraterritorial approach to pursuing alleged white-collar criminals, and to date, there have been no signs from the UK Government that it is prepared to revise the new extradition arrangements with its transatlantic counterpart.
NOT FOR REPRINT
© 2024 ALM Global, LLC, All Rights Reserved. Request academic re-use from www.copyright.com. All other uses, submit a request to [email protected]. For more information visit Asset & Logo Licensing.
Trending Stories
- 1The Law Firm Disrupted: For Big Law Names, Shorter is Sweeter
- 2Wine, Dine and Grind (Through the Weekend): Summer Associates Thirst For Experience in 'Real Matters'
- 3'That's Disappointing': Only 11% of MDL Appointments Went to Attorneys of Color in 2023
- 4What We Know About the Kentucky Judge Killed in His Chambers
- 5'I'm Staying Everything': Texas Bankruptcy Judge Halts Talc Trials Against J&J
Featured Firms
Law Offices of Gary Martin Hays & Associates, P.C.
(470) 294-1674
Law Offices of Mark E. Salomone
(857) 444-6468
Smith & Hassler
(713) 739-1250