Justice Department Issues Updated Guide on Compliance Programs

The Department of Justice issued an updated guidance for corporate compliance programs, describing how “well-designed” programs should work and detailing what Justice expects from those programs, the department said in an April 30 press release. The 19-page guide aims to “harmonize” compliance guidance with standards from other departments, DOJ said, while “providing additional context to the multifactor analysis of a company’s compliance program.”

DOJ said it included topics that the Criminal Division “frequently found relevant” when it evaluates compliance programs. The topics relate to three main questions it said companies should be asking: “First, is the program well-designed? Second, is the program effectively implemented? And, third, does the compliance program actually work in practice?”

The guide’s first section describes how compliance programs should address risk assessments, company procedures, training, communication, confidential reporting, investigations and mergers, the notice said. The second section deals with the “effective implementation” of the program, “including commitment by senior and middle management, autonomy and resources, and incentives and disciplinary measures.” The third section explains how companies can determine if their compliance programs are “operating effectively” while “exploring a program’s capacity for continuous improvement.”

“Today’s guidance document is part of our broader efforts in training, hiring, and enforcement to help promote corporate behaviors that benefit the American public and ensure that prosecutors evaluate the effectiveness of compliance in a rigorous and transparent manner,” Assistant Attorney General Brian Benczkowski said in a statement. The previous version was issued in February 2017.