Deferred prosecution

A deferred prosecution agreement is a voluntary alternative to adjudication in which a prosecutor agrees to grant amnesty in exchange for the defendant agreeing to fulfill certain requirements. A case of corporate fraud, for instance, might be settled by means of a deferred-prosecution agreement in which the defendant agrees to pay fines, implement corporate reforms, and fully cooperate with the investigation. Fulfillment of the specified requirements will then result in dismissal of the charges.^[1] Under the U.S. Sentencing Guidelines, a past deferred prosecution will not count toward a defendant's criminal history, if there was no finding of guilt by a court and the defendant did not plead guilty or otherwise admit guilt in open court. This is in contrast to a deferred disposition, which typically does involve such a finding or admission.^[2] Since 1999, the U.S. Department of Justice has set forth guidelines concerning the prosecution of business organizations and corporations.^[3]

References

1. ^ The American Heritage Dictionary of Business Terms. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. 2009. http://www.yourdictionary.com/business/deferred-prosecution-agreement. 
2. ^ U.S.S.G. § 4A1.2(f)({{{6}}}) (2009)
3. ^ Corporate Prosecution Principles Resource Page

External links

• Regulating the 'new regulators': current trends in deferred prosecution agreements