Law360 quoted partner Fred Block in an article discussing the increasingly aggressive enforcement stance of the US Securities and Exchange Commission, driven by collaboration with the Department of Justice and resulting in more parallel civil and criminal investigations. Fred correlated the stance to the 2008 financial crisis, whereafter prosecutors felt pressure to demonstrate accountability for business misconduct in response to public criticism that not enough individuals were held criminally responsible for the crisis.
“There was a critique that not enough people went down,” Fred said, adding that “prosecutors likely felt some of that critique and became more interested in demonstrating to the public that being a successful businessman didn’t mean you were immune from criminal prosecution.”