The new urgency of corporate compliance

NEWS AND EVENTS 05 Jul 2016

Compliance is debated at SÉRVULO, from several perspectives, in a series of seminars dedicated to the subject. The first seminar takes place at the firm’s offices on July 12, from 9:30am to 11:30pm, and is targeted at legal and compliance directors.

José Lobo Moutinho, partner at SÉRVULO in the area of Corporate Crime and Regulatory Compliance, and head of the firm’s compliance service, will give an introduction, followed by a presentation by Teresa Serra, Of Counsel in the area of Corporate Crime and Regulatory Compliance, contextualising compliance and explaining its relevance. The morning’s third presentation will be given by Paulo Câmara, partner of the Finance & Governance department, who will look at recent developments to compliance in the financial sector.

Miguel Gorjão-Henriques, partner of the European Law and Competition Law department, will open the second part of the programme with an analysis of the theme of competition compliance in the age of clemency; followed by an intervention by Ana Brito Camacho, associate in the Corporate Crime and Regulatory Compliance department, on internal investigations into corruption and fraud.

On the growing importance of compliance as an area of legal interest, José Lobo Moutinho states that “the size, complexity and efficiency of modern-day companies do not always work, and in the good sense, because they give rise to a supply of goods and services, but also because the possibilities generated and the damages provoked by illicit behaviour are the result of personal freedom. The extension of liability, including criminal liability, to companies and to their directors is the first response to this reality, which highlights the urgent need for another one, namely prevention, through introducing legal best practice into the DNA of companies, in short, the urgent need for compliance. A balanced compliance programme, one that does not paralyse a company, nor one that is merely an epitaph or good intentions marketing, is, undoubtedly a challenge, but one worth facing.”

Compliance is debated at SÉRVULO, from several perspectives, in a series of seminars dedicated to the subject. The first seminar takes place at the firm’s offices on July 12, from 9:30am to 11:30pm, and is targeted at legal and compliance directors.

José Lobo Moutinho, partner at SÉRVULO in the area of Corporate Crime and Regulatory Compliance, and head of the firm’s compliance service, will give an introduction, followed by a presentation by Teresa Serra, Of Counsel in the area of Corporate Crime and Regulatory Compliance, contextualising compliance and explaining its relevance. The morning’s third presentation will be given by Paulo Câmara, partner of the Finance & Governance department, who will look at recent developments to compliance in the financial sector.

Miguel Gorjão-Henriques, partner of the European Law and Competition Law department, will open the second part of the programme with an analysis of the theme of competition compliance in the age of clemency; followed by an intervention by Ana Brito Camacho, associate in the Corporate Crime and Regulatory Compliance department, on internal investigations into corruption and fraud; and, to conclude, the presentation of David Silva Ramalho, associate in the areas of Data Protection and Corporate Crime and Regulatory Compliance, will cover the new General Regulation on Data Protection.

On the growing importance of compliance as an area of legal interest, José Lobo Moutinho states that “the size, complexity and efficiency of modern-day companies do not always work, and in the good sense, because they give rise to a supply of goods and services, but also because the possibilities generated and the damages provoked by illicit behaviour are the result of personal freedom. The extension of liability, including criminal liability, to companies and to their directors is the first response to this reality, which highlights the urgent need for another one, namely prevention, through introducing legal best practice into the DNA of companies, in short, the urgent need for compliance. A balanced compliance programme, one that does not paralyse a company, nor one that is merely an epitaph or good intentions marketing, is, undoubtedly a challenge, but one worth facing.”