Preventive measures at an early stage
Demand for corporate compliance and investigation services increases as the world grows more complex. Mannheimer Swartling’s Corporate Compliance & Investigations practice advises on all aspects of regulatory compliance, internal investigations, fraud, anti-corruption, anti-money laundering, employment sanction issues, trade sanctions and export control issues.

The firm has extensive experience in the design and implementation of preventive measures such as compliance programmes, education and training, as well as supporting and advising clients on public disclosure and in investigations and proceedings by and before regulatory agencies and securities exchanges. Advice at an early stage helps to minimise reputational damage and the risk of an adverse regulatory finding, which in turn may lead to civil or criminal proceedings.

We counsel our clients long before regulatory action, including counselling on industry risk areas. We also assist by conducting internal investigations for our clients, either at our clients’ own initiative or because an internal investigation has been requested or required by a regulatory or enforcement agency. Thus, we are able to provide representation at every step of a corporate crisis, from the earliest stages of investigations through trial.

Regulatory compliance
We advise our clients on implementing and strengthening corporate compliance programmes to help prevent potential problems before they occur. We have designed and assisted in implementing compliance programmes for our clients in a wide variety of areas, including the formulation of programmes and policies designed to prevent violation of government regulations involving insider trading and other securities law matters, antitrust, money laundering, corrupt practices and other regulations.

Internal investigations
Internal investigations require significant resources and particular expertise and must be handled with considerable sensitivity. We are frequently retained to conduct internal investigations into possible irregularities, including allegations of accounting and other improprieties raised by government enforcement agencies or whistleblowers.

By conducting a prompt and thorough internal investigation, preferably before public agency intervention, or else prior to completion of agency investigations, clients are better positioned to obtain a favourable outcome, including the possibility that the authorities decline to pursue the matter. Such investigations are conducted quickly and efficiently with due regard to e.g. legal privilege, data protection legislation and the relevant anti-corruption legislation.

Corporate defence
We represent corporate clients in all aspects of complex civil, administrative and criminal proceedings brought by a variety of regulatory and criminal authorities and in investigations by self-regulatory organisations such as the various market exchanges. The group’s broad and deep experience in the representation of clients facing parallel civil and criminal investigations enables the firm to provide a wellcoordinated team of specialists able to defend corporate clients on all fronts.