Tag Archives: Ann Sultan

DOJ Releases Updated Evaluation of Corporate Compliance Programs Guidance

by Ann Sultan, John E. Davis, and Kathryn Cameron Atkinson

Photos of the Authors.

Left to right: Ann Sultan, John E. Davis, and Kathryn Cameron Atkinson. (Photos courtesy of Miler Chevalier Chartered)

On September 23, 2024, in conjunction with a related speech at the Society of Corporate Compliance and Ethics (SCCE) Compliance & Ethics Institute by Principal Deputy Assistant Attorney General (PDAAG) Nicole M. Argentieri, the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ) released an updated version of its guidance to prosecutors on the Evaluation of Corporate Compliance Programs (updated ECCP). The DOJ last updated this guidance in March 2023. View a redline comparison of the September 2024 updates to the March 2023 version here.

The DOJ’s substantive revisions for this round of updates focused primarily on using data and technology related to various compliance program elements, integrating and adapting to lessons learned from other companies, and reporting. As PDAAG Argentieri noted, the DOJ “regularly evaluate[s] our policies and enforcement tools, including the ECCP, to account for changing circumstances and new risks.”

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SEC Signals Workplace Misconduct is a Disclosure Issue with Activision Blizzard’s $35 Million Settlement

by Alejandra Montenegro Almonte, Sandra M. Hanna, Ann Sultan, and Maame Esi Austin

Photos of the authors

From left to right: Alejandra Montenegro Almonte, Sandra M. Hanna, Ann Sultan, and Maame Esi Austin (photos courtesy of Miller & Chevalier Chartered)

The SEC is taking a hardline against workplace misconduct and signaling to public companies that they ought to handle those issues with the same care and consideration as they have for other potential securities violations, such as those with financial statement implications. The SEC’s latest action in this regard – a settled administrative proceeding against Activision Blizzard Inc. (Activision Blizzard or the Company) – faults Activision Blizzard for alleged “disclosure control” deficiencies related to employee complaints of workplace misconduct.

On February 3, 2023, Activision Blizzard, a California-based video game development and publishing company, consented to the entry of an SEC Order and agreed to pay a $35 million civil penalty for allegedly inadequate disclosure controls and procedures that failed to ensure that management could assess and, where necessary, disclose employee complaints of workplace misconduct. The Order also settles allegations that the Company violated SEC whistleblower protection rules by including language in settlement agreements with separated employees requiring those employees to notify Activision Blizzard if they receive requests from the agency. As is typical, the Company settled the matter on a neither-admit-nor-deny basis. 

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