White Collar Crimes: Understanding the Complexities of Business-Related Offenses - Prof. V, Study notes of Business and Labour Law

Download White Collar Crimes: Understanding the Complexities of Business-Related Offenses - Prof. V and more Study notes Business and Labour Law in PDF only on Docsity! Chapter Eight – Terms and Concepts Criminal Law *On the civil side, more than 90% of cases settle. This is also true and even more so on the criminal side!!* This entire experience has opened my eyes up to a tragic world of injustice I never knew existed. If it is possible for law enforcement officials to systematically railroad us with no evidence whatsoever, it is frightening to think what they could do to those who do not to have the resources to defend themselves. So rather than relying on disparaging stereotypes, or creating political and racial conflicts, we must all take a step back from this case and learn from it. This tragedy has revealed that our society has lost site of the core principle of our legal system, the presumption of innocence. Reade Seligmann, former Duke University student and lacrosse player Simple Street Crime: Affects businesses on a street level (where they interact with the community). You must take in consideration the type of environments your business is located in - Embezzlement Embezzlement is when you take something that was entrusted to you by your company. (Fraudulent conversion of property already in your possession) o This is a type of larceny (theft). Employee theft is a white collar crime - Computer Crimes: Anytime you are using a company’s computer and do something illegal (posting a downloaded movie) it can be a felony White Collar Crime Crimes committed by businesspeople, usually harmful to consumers, other businesses or the government. Crimes which are generally not considered “street crimes.” White collar crimes are sometimes thought of as less serious than street crimes, but economically speaking the aggregate economic effect of white collar crimes amounts to tens of billions of dollars annually. - Fraud: The deception of another person for the purpose of obtaining money or property from him. EX- Making misrepresentations about your company. Can be sued civilly and is also a crime. EX- WorldCom, Enron, etc. Enron went bankrupt overnight due to false financial statements - Workplace crimes: EX-repeated violations of statutes/regulatory standards, like health standards. - Conspiracy: Two or more people coming together to commit a crime - Arson- burning someone’s property. This comes up in the business context when people perform this to get insurance. This is an interplay between business and crime and business and insurance. This can be included as insurance fraud - Medicare fraud: Ripping off the government- claim treatment you actually didn’t apply - Identity theft - Money laundering: take money that you know is a result of a crime and put it in a separate account so that when it is wired, it seems to be legitimate. The money launderer takes a portion of that money If you are charged for a crime with a risk of incarceration, you have a right to a lawyer. The government is the prosecutor for crimes! They must prove their case {1066.001 / 00024052 /} “Beyond a reasonable doubt” is the standard for a criminal case Interstate Crime Crime committed in one state, which continues or leads to a result in another state. Significant in that Congress can criminalize interstate crime through its power to regulate interstate commerce. Wire fraud/mail fraud Federal crimes involving the use of interstate mail, electronic transmissions, telephone, radio or television to obtain money or property by deceit. Frequently, wire fraud and mail fraud charges are included in federal prosecutions of both white collar and street crimes. Medicare fraud: - Using false statements, bribes, or kickbacks to obtain Medicare payments from the government Felony A serious crime for which a defendant can be sentenced to one year or more in prison Misdemeanor A less serious crime for which a defendant may be fined and/or sentenced to incarceration of 12 months or less Probation Court ordered supervision of a defendant that is convicted, but has all or a portion of his or her sentence suspended (meaning the defendant was given a sentence including a term of imprisonment, but does not have to serve the prison time so long as the defendant follows the rules of probation and maintains orderly and lawful behavior). Parole An administrative scheme which establishes guidelines for early release of prisoners; abolished in some states, including Virginia. Restitution Court ordered payment meant as compensation to a crime victim (separate and distinct from a fine, which is paid to the state). In prosecution of street crimes, offenders often cannot afford to pay restitution to compensate their victims. In white collar prosecutions, restitution payments often result and can be quite significant. Beyond a Reasonable Doubt The burden of proof necessary for the government to prove each element of its case against an accused criminal defendant. This standard is much higher than the “preponderance of the evidence” burden of proof generally applicable to civil trials. If a jury finds that a defendant is guilty “beyond a reasonable doubt,” it means that the prosecution has demonstrated to the jury that there is no reasonable interpretation of the facts presented at trial but that the defendant committed the particular crime of which he or she is accused. Guilty/Not Guilty The terms used to describe whether or a criminal defendant is convicted or acquitted. Analogous to the terms “liable” and “not liable” used in civil cases. Plea Bargain An agreement between the prosecution and defense that the defendant will plead guilty, usually to a reduced charge, in exchange for the prosecution recommending to the judge a more lenient sentence than might result if the defendant were to exercise his or her {1066.001 / 00024052 /}