The following is not meant to be legal advice.
An attorney representing an entity should be aware of a criminal prosecution. A case brought by the United States Attorney for the District of Connecticut is an example of the criminal liability an attorney working for a corporation could face by not understanding criminal laws.
Background information: A crime began when a church discovered child pornography on the laptop computer of one of its employees. The church engaged an attorney to represent the church about the continued employment of the employee. The attorney met with the employee and told him, that possession of child pornography was a federal crime because it dealt with under aged children. The employee indicated he would resign from the church. The church gave the laptop to the attorney. The attorney destroyed the laptop because the attorney thought he would get in trouble for being in possession of the child pornography, and did not want to turn the laptop over to the police because he though that would violate his duty to zealously represent his client, the church.
The attorney pleaded guilty misprision of a felony which meant: (1) someone other than the defendant committed a felony; (2) the defendant had knowledge of that fact; (3) the defendant failed to notify the authorities; and (4) the defendant took some affirmative step to conceal the crime. The case is an example that attorneys should obtain the advice of criminal defense attorneys they are confronted with a crime committed within their organization. The government charged the attorney with: (1) obstruction of justice, a violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1512(c)(1), and (2) criminal destruction of a tangible object, a violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1519. Later, the government reached a plea agreement with the attorney.
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