The Practitioner’s Guide to Global Investigations: Production of Information to the Authorities
Dechert authors contributed to The Practitioner’s Guide to Global Investigations, Fourth Edition with the chapter, "Production of Information to the Authorities."
There are many situations in which a company may face a choice, or a demand, to disclose documents and information to a law enforcement authority or regulator. These range from responding to a raid on corporate and individual premises, to compliance with a subpoena or other compulsory process, to the voluntary provision of information during a self-disclosure. The types of information and the circumstances in which a company is obliged – or even able – to produce relevant documents is circumscribed by various laws. For example, a company must address concerns regarding confidentiality, employee privacy, data protection and legal privilege (and, in certain jurisdictions, bank secrecy restrictions or blocking statutes). This becomes additionally complicated in cross-border cases where multiple legal regimes may apply and may conflict with one another. Add to this the not uncommon scenario of authorities from different countries seeking the same (or slightly different) information and it becomes a legal and practical minefield. This chapter cannot hope to cover the immense number of variables that a company may face in these circumstances, but it does seek to provide practical guidance on some of the most important points.
