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White
Collar Fraud
White Collar Fraud/Investigation
The term "white collar crime" typically
refers to business-related financial crimes. These
crimes violate federal law and are usually charged
in federal court. White collar crimes include
antitrust violations, bank fraud, bankruptcy fraud,
bribery, computer/internet fraud, credit card
fraud, counterfeiting, economic espionage, embezzlement,
extortion, forgery, insurance fraud, money laundering,
securities fraud, and tax evasion. Penalties for
white collar offenses include fines, jail time,
restitution, forfeiture, supervised release, and
home detention. Please read on to find a white
collar crime lawyer.
The investigation of a white collar crime can
be a long, involved process, and may go on for
months or years. A person may be one of the targets
of a criminal investigation, and not know it until
formal charges are filed. Defense lawyers should
become involved in the matter as early as possible,
as soon as a person suspects he or she may be
involved in an investigation, even as a witness.
The complex nature of a white collar criminal
prosecution means that a person's potential exposure
may not be clear in the early stages of the investigation.
Many white collar criminal defendants have had
their cases damaged by something they said or
did in the early stages of an investigation, before
they were targeted or suspected. A defense lawyer
should certainly be consulted before any meeting,
however innocuous it may seem, with law enforcement.
| Antitrust Violations: |
Price fixing, monopolies and other infractions
of the Sherman Act and the Clayton Act |
| Bank Fraud: |
Fraud against a banking institution, including
check fraud, commercial loan fraud, check
kiting, and mortgage fraud |
| Bankruptcy Fraud: |
Individuals or corporations who lie to creditors
or bankruptcy officials about assets or debts |
| Bribery: |
Offering money or property with the intention
of influencing the behavior of others |
| Computer/Internet Fraud: |
Using the Internet or computers to defraud
others |
| Credit Card Fraud: |
Using someone else?s credit card to purchase
goods illegally |
| Counterfeiting: |
Copying goods (such as designer merchandise)
or money, and passing off the copies as genuine |
| Economic Espionage: |
Stealing or misusing trade secrets |
| Embezzlement: |
Using money or goods entrusted to you for
your own benefit |
| Extortion: |
Taking money from someone through force,
coercion or threats |
| Forgery: |
Manipulating or changing a written document
for monetary gain |
| Insurance Fraud: |
Defrauding insurance companies by exaggerating
or fabricating claims |
| Money Laundering: |
Running money obtained illegally through
a legitimate business |
| Securities Fraud: |
Can include insider trading and theft through
market manipulation |
| Tax Evasion: |
Filing inaccurate IRS returns, not reporting
income on tax returns, not filing tax returns. |
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