The US DoJ announces it will consider deferred prosecution agreements for companies demonstrating “good corporate citizenship”

The DOJ Antitrust Division recently announced that it will allow prosecutors to resolve criminal antitrust investigations with deferred prosecution agreements (“DPAs”) for qualified corporate defendants. Under the Division’s prior policies, the first company or individual to self-report an antitrust violation could qualify for leniency, but the Division required others involved in the conspiracy to plead guilty or face indictment. The Division’s new policy allows for DPAs to be offered when a company has demonstrated the four hallmarks of “good corporate citizenship”: (i) having an effective compliance program, (ii) selfreporting wrongdoing, (iii) cooperating with government investigations, and (iv) remedying past misconduct. In announcing the new policy,