Turn the Page: The Antitrust Division’s New Approach to Incentivizing Antitrust Compliance Programs

Corporate compliance programs are the first line of defense in preventing costly antitrust crimes before they corrupt our free markets and harm American consumers. As the enforcer of the federal criminal antitrust laws, the Antitrust Division is responsible for using its authority to deter, detect, and prosecute these violations. While as prosecutors we are often focused on detection and prosecution, the Division also wants to do all it can to deter and prevent criminal antitrust conduct before it occurs. With that in mind, on July 11, 2019, the Division announced multiple changes aimed at incentivizing companies to prioritize antitrust compliance. The Division will now consider compliance at the charging stage in criminal antitrust investigations. The Division also announced revisions to the Justice Manual reflecting this policy change, along with updates to the Antitrust Division Manual. And for the first time, the Division issued public guidance on the Evaluation of Corporate Compliance Programs in Criminal Antitrust Investigations.