Legal news and trends for Canadian in-house counsel and c-suite executives
Issue link: https://digital.canadianlawyermag.com/i/1286864
36 www.canadianlawyermag.com/inhouse FEATURE — whether you have a booming economy or a financial crisis — white- collar crime will always find its way," says Moubayed. "With the pandemic, you are going to see vulnerabilities being extorted more and more, and the role of in-house counsel is to make sure you have proper systems in place to detect, prevent and remediate those problems." Moubayed advises in-house counsel to work toward bringing a cultural shift within a company to make corruption socially unaccept- able. Outlining rules on a company website is not enough. He believes that such a shift requires real conversations between all stakeholders to create a clear commitment against financial crime and to ensure that everyone understands why it is so important. Lincoln Caylor, a partner at Bennett Jones LLP, warns that U.S. regulators are actively investigating the public filings of companies to screen for those that are using the pandemic to hide prior failings or losses — a trend that may come to Canada. He also cautions that regulators are actively investigating the use of government funds, so in-house counsel should continue to be vigilant. "The regulatory environment will swing back to more active investiga- tions and you won't be able to sweep things under the rug because of COVID. Those that try will risk compliance issues," says Caylor. A general counsel who becomes aware of white-collar crime within an organization should drop everything and immediately focus on triaging the situation, according to Norm Keith, a partner at Fasken Martineau DuMoulin LLP. Retaining external counsel and a forensic investigator is recommended, together with rapid freezing of digital data and electronic documents, he suggests. "When you have taken all remediation and terminated the necessary employees and third parties, then do a review and update of your policy and procedures," says Keith. THANK YOU FOR YOUR NOMINATIONS! On behalf of Canadian Lawyer InHouse, we would like to thank our readers for taking part in the call for nominations for the 2020 Lexpert Rising Stars Awards. We are proud to celebrate exceptional young in-house counsel who have made outstanding contributions to their organizations in their careers thus far. Winners will be celebrated and profiled in a Lexpert ® Special Edition in November. BE PART OF THE CELEBRATION For event information or sponsorship opportunities: risingstarscanada.com Presented by Signature Sponsor Supported by Organized by "The history of white-collar crime shows us that, in every situation — whether you have a booming economy or a financial crisis — white- collar crime will always find its way." Leon Moubayed, Davies Ward Phillips & Vineberg LLP