Jkaplan


The full promise of compliance and ethics programs

The full promise of compliance and ethics programs goes beyond the purely business realm to include nurturing habits of mind that address a wider range of challenges than just business-related ones (e.g. those concerning  family/personal life and governmental). Among other things, such habits of mind could include (but would not […]

Ethical standards for Caesar’s children

My most recent posting looks at COI issues that can arise when government officials use their office to benefit their spouses.   “Caesar’s wife should be above suspicion,” the great man famously (and allegedly) said. But what about Caesar’s children? Children can, of course, be the source of potent COIs. There […]

Ethical standards for Caesar’s spouse

“Caesar’s wife should be above suspicion,” Julius Caesar famously said.  But that’s not always how it works. The issue of higher standards has been explored  (among other places) in a prior posting.  It has also recently arisen in connection with scrutiny of various business activities of Virginia Thomas, Justice Clarence Thomas’ […]

What is a page of compliance worth?

Justice Oliver Wendell Holmes famously said that a page of history can be worth a volume of logic.  This raises the question – at least among C&E professionals – What is a page of compliance worth? At least to my mind the answer is:  Potentially quite a bit. Among other […]

Conflicts of interest and the dark side of professionalism

Perhaps my favorite ethics story is when the senior partner of a law firm was confronted by a junior partner about an apparent conflict of interest, and replied “You’re an ethics expert – find a way around this.” In Professionalism Paradox: A sense of professionalism increases vulnerability to conflicts of […]

Board oversight of C&E programs: how much is enough?

There was a time when a company’s merely having a code of conduct could be enough to dismiss a claim against the company’s directors under the Caremark case for failed compliance program oversight. But those days are now gone. In his forthcoming article in the Journal of Corporate Law, “Max […]

Rebecca Walker on the progression of compliance

In the April issue of Compliance and Ethics Professional.   

What does the “E” in your C&E program stand for?

My latest column in C&E Professional. I hope you find it useful

I was recently interviewed as part of the Pioneers in Business Ethics project.

You can find the text here. I hope you find it interesing.  

An important ethics warning for corporate counsel

From an article in the ABA Journal last week :   “As a way to undermine discovery, Google directs employees to add attorneys and seek legal advice in writing for ‘ordinary-course business communications,’ according to a March 21 sanctions motion filed by the U.S. Department of Justice, which is suing the […]