LSW partner Gabrielle Friedman joined a panel of distinguished practitioners in Dublin, Ireland at the 39th Annual Conference of the International Bar Association Banking and Financial Law Section to discuss international perspectives on Whistleblowing and Investigations in Financial Institutions.

Regulatory and public scrutiny of financial institutions shows no signs of lessening. Regulators and the public increasingly look to ‘whistleblowers’ to expose wrong-doing and unethical behavior within regulated firms and the resulting internal and external investigations can be complex, time consuming and resource intensive. The panel examined these trends from a cross-jurisdictional perspective and provided practical guidance for lawyers called upon to advise institutions dealing with these issues.

The panel engaged in lively discussion with each other and an audience of lawyers from around the world to explore issues including:

• How do regulators incentivize voluntary disclosure of misconduct?  Is the US a global outlier? 
• Can companies prohibit employees from disclosing misconduct outside company channels?
• What constitutes retaliation and how can an organization manage it in practice?
• When should an investigation be conducted by outside counsel?
• Why is privilege important in investigations?

 

The panel consisted of: Liam Flynn (Mason Hayes & Curran, Dublin); Andrea Huber (Pestalozzi, Zurich); Jane Anne Negi (Bank of Montreal Europe PLC); Daniel S. Weber (Wenger Vieli, Zurich).

The IBA, established in 1947, is a global organization of international legal practitioners, bar associations, law firms and law societies. Through its various committees, fora and task forces, the IBA facilitates the exchange of information and views among its members as to laws, practices and professional responsibilities relating to the practice of law around the world.