From Volkswagen’s DieselGate to Wells Fargo’s banking scandal,[1] the breadth and nature of high-profile corporate[2] and government[3] scandals and well-publicized corruption is staggering. Headlines aside, ethical misconduct is hardly uncommon today – nearly half of all fraud cases are not publicly reported[4] and over 40% of executives surveyed in a recent study said “they could…

Legal professional privilege exists in most jurisdictions across the world. However, the scope, application, and nature of the protections afforded to legal professional privilege and confidentiality of communications vary widely. Because of the shared origins and many similarities between the legal systems of the UK, the U.S., Canada and Australia, there tends to be a…

Practicing with integrity in an in-house position, whether in the private or public sector, has always required special skill; but along with the advantages of the insider’s perspective come particular challenges. The fact of having one client — the corporation or the government[1] — means that an in-house lawyer is particularly vulnerable when there is…

The lack of integrity (actual or perceived) in public office and the private boardroom is a critical reason we are now experiencing what has been described as a crisis in leadership[1] and trust.[2] A deficiency of trust is indexed as the number one problem confronted by business and political leaders today. According to several studies,…