Wall St. Fraud and Fiduciary Responsibilities: Can Jail Time Serve as an Adequate Deterrent for Willful Violations?

Authors

William K. Black, University of Missouri - Kansas City, School of LawFollow

Publication Date

2010

Document Type

Article

Abstract

The answer to the question posed by the title of this hearing is: only prison sentences can deter the violations that caused the debacle. We should, however, never rely solely on prosecutions to constrain crimes. The criminal justice system needs to work with regulation not only to make regulation more effective, but also to prevent “private market discipline” from becoming a “criminogenic” oxymoron. To understand the vital role that the criminal justice system must play if we are to avoid the recurrent, intensifying financial crises that have beset this and many other nations for nearly three decades we must begin by understanding the epidemics of “control fraud” that are driving these crises.

Comments

Testimony to the United States Senate, Committee on the Judiciary, Subcommittee on Crime and Drugs, May 4, 2010.

Recommended Citation

William K. Black, Wall St. Fraud and Fiduciary Responsibilities: Can Jail Time Serve as an Adequate Deterrent for Willful Violations?, (2010).
Available at: https://irlaw.umkc.edu/faculty_works/465