After reading this chapter, you should understand the nature of criminal law, why it is important to business, and the potential consequences of committing criminal acts. You will become familiar with white-collar crimes, blue-collar crimes, and crimes committed by businesses. You will also learn about the constitutional protections afforded to those accused of committing a crime, and the purpose of punishments for committing crimes. This chapter will explore corporate liability as well as individual liability for corporate actions. It also will examine strategies to minimize corporate criminal liability exposure or losses attributed to criminal activities. At the conclusion of this chapter, you should be able to answer the following questions:
Consider the photo in Figure 10.1 "Businessperson in Trouble". It is probably not the usual image conjured by most business students who dream of success in the business world. Yet it becomes a sad reality for too many managers and executives who commit crimes in the context of their professional lives. How can the path from business success lead to a criminal conviction? Click on any credible news source today, and you will find among the headlines a story in which this photo would fit.
Of course, there are many reasons why something like this happens. People sometimes fall into the “wrong crowd” at work, and they do not know how to walk away. Sometimes corporate culture and leadership can contaminate a work environment, causing people to disregard ethical behavior or to flagrantly ignore the laws. If “everyone is doing it,” then someone might believe that it’s OK for him or her to do it, too. Being part of an organization has a way of making someone feel insulated and “safe” when committing wrongdoings. For example, some members of the Enron workforce seemed to be swept up in a culture of corporate greed, and they did not know how to walk away. Other people are opportunists, and their moral compass or ethics do not lead them away from temptation. Bernie Madoff may be a prime example of such an opportunist in today’s news. Sometimes, criminal behavior results from the emphasis of profit over ethical behavior. For example, we might think of corporate environmental crimes, in which corporations decide not to follow regulatory requirements regarding hazardous waste disposal or storage. In the end, of course, the reasons for the criminal behavior do not matter. When a crime is committed, others will be injured, and the wrongdoer will be subject to criminal prosecution.
Everyone must be diligent about crime. Crimes affect businesses both from the inside and from the outside. Even if individuals are honest in their dealings, that does not relieve them from the necessity to maintain a vigilant watch to protect not only their good name but also that of their business from the criminal activities of others. Criminal activity “from the outside” can be costly to businesses. Loss through property damage, theft, shoplifting, corporate espionage, fraud, and arson are real threats. Perhaps more insidiously, threats “from the inside” also pose tremendous risk of loss. These activities include crimes such as embezzlement, computer crimes, and fraud. Such “inside jobs” are perhaps more unsettling because the perpetrators are often trusted colleagues who would not ordinarily fall under the suspicion of others. Moreover, a corporation must also protect itself from the bad judgment or overzealous behavior of its employees. If an employee acting within the scope of employment commits a crime from which the corporation itself will benefit, then the corporation can be convicted of the crime, too. Of course, not all corporations that are convicted on criminal charges are hapless victims of an overzealous employee who commits crimes on their behalf. Other businesses are actively involved in crime, whether through a corporate culture run amok or through outright organized crime, such as money laundering.
Let’s explore criminal law in the business world. Not only do we need to understand basic criminal law and the nature of crime in business to understand everyday headlines, but we also must ensure that our own professional dealings and the people associated with our businesses are never the legitimate focus of such stories. This chapter explores the differences between criminal law and civil law, the nature of criminal law, the constitutional protections afforded to those accused of committing a crime, relevant defenses, consequences of committing crimes, and the goals of punishment. It also examines specific crimes relevant to business, including white-collar crime, blue-collar crime that harms businesses, and crimes committed by businesses. Last, it examines different strategies to minimize exposure to criminal liability.
Criminal law is relevant to business because crime presents real threats. When crimes are committed, people are injured. Criminal behavior is punishable by law. Risks to business posed by crime arise from the losses suffered from the criminal activities of those on the outside of the business organization, as well as those on the inside. Corporations themselves can be liable for crime when an employee working within the scope of employment commits crime that benefits the corporation, or when the corporation itself commits crime.
