Debevoise & Plimpton LLP lawyers have contributed to the sixth edition of Global Investigation Review’s “The Practitioner’s Guide to Global Investigations,” a practical guide for external and in-house counsel, compliance officers and accounting practitioners. White collar partners Bruce Yannett and David Sarratt contributed a chapter to the guide entitled, “Beginning an Internal Investigation: The US Perspective,” and white collar partner and Senior Chair Mary Jo White wrote the book’s foreword.
The chapter provides readers with useful tools to navigate the beginning of an internal investigation including how to identify the right client within an organization for whom the internal investigation would be conducted, how to determine the scope of an investigation and how to preserve the relevant documents and materials related to the investigation. Mistakes made in the initial phases of an investigation can have costly repercussions down the road, and, for this reason, it is important to consider all the relevant legal, commercial and logistical factors in making strategic decisions early on.
David Sarratt is co-managing partner of the firm’s San Francisco office and a member of the White Collar & Regulatory Defense Practice Group. He is a seasoned trial lawyer whose practice focuses on government enforcement actions, internal investigations and complex civil litigation for financial institutions and other clients. Mr. Sarratt has particular experience in matters relating to compliance with the Bank Secrecy Act and the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, and with novel enforcement issues arising from new technologies.
Mary Jo White is Senior Chair of the firm and leader of the Strategic Crisis Response and Solutions Group, specializes in multifaceted government investigations and white collar, SEC enforcement and internal investigations. Ms. White has decades of experience, having served as Chair of the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission and the U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York and as a well-known private practitioner in high-profile matters.
Bruce Yannett is Deputy Presiding Partner of the firm and Chair of the White Collar & Regulatory Defense Practice Group. He focuses on white collar criminal defense, regulatory enforcement and internal investigations, representing a broad range of companies, financial institutions and their executives in matters involving securities fraud, accounting fraud, foreign bribery, cybersecurity, insider trading and money laundering.
Mr. Sarratt , Ms. White and Mr. Yannett and are members of Debevoise’s award-winning White Collar & Regulatory Defense Group ranked as one of the world’s top practices by Global Investigations Review and as Band 1 by Chambers on both sides of the Atlantic for its complex representations of clients facing litigation and public policy crises. Selected by Law360 as a 2021 White Collar Practice Group of the Year, the Group has been involved in some of the most significant investigations and resolutions over the past few years, and offers international and domestic clients a depth of experience and global reach that allows for effective and strategic counsel, from defending against criminal prosecutions and civil enforcement actions, to conducting internal investigations, negotiating complex global settlements and facilitating cooperation with government regulators.