Back

Internal Corporate Investigations – Giving Statements | Houston Criminal Law

Dan Cogdell | 902 Views | 08/26/2015

Internal Corporate Investigations

You work for a large corporation and you recently found out that your corporation is conducting an internal investigation to determine whether or not there’s been wrong doing conducted at the corporation you work for. You’ve been asked to come in, make a statement to the corporate council or to an outside council and you’re told they’re there to help you. Should you make a statement? Should you sit down with them?

Hi, my name is Dan Cogdell. I’m a criminal lawyer here in Texas and I’ve been practicing law for 32 years here in the city of Houston. I see that situation with far too much regularity and frequency where there’s an internal corporate investigation to determine whether or not the corporation is guilty of a crime.

Giving Statements to Lawyers

They bring in an outside lawyer and a good corporate employee sits down and makes a statement to that outside council with the assurance that that outside council is there to help them and there to act as their lawyer. I have a news flash for you. That lawyer is not there to help you. That lawyer is there to help the corporation. Anything you tell that lawyer is admissible against you. It’s admissible against you in any proceeding. If that person is not a lawyer hired by you or retained by you or hired specifically to represent you, that lawyer is not your friend. He’s the friend of the corporation, he’s not the friend of the employee.

You Need Legal Representation

If you find yourself in the cross hairs of an internal corporate investigation you need to make sure that you have a lawyer there representing your interest, not the interest of the corporation. If we can help you, if you’re in that situation give us a call. We’ve done it over and over again. We can explain the pitfalls, we can explain the landmines, we can explain when it’s a good idea for you to make a statement and when it’s not. We can’t help you at all unless you give us a call. Thank you for listening.

By:Dan Cogdell

Internal Corporate Investigations – Giving Statements | Houston Criminal Law

Internal Corporate Investigations

You work for a large corporation and you recently found out that your corporation is conducting an internal investigation to determine whether or not there’s been wrong doing conducted at the corporation you work for. You’ve been asked to come in, make a statement to the corporate council or to an outside council and you’re told they’re there to help you. Should you make a statement? Should you sit down with them?

Hi, my name is Dan Cogdell. I’m a criminal lawyer here in Texas and I’ve been practicing law for 32 years here in the city of Houston. I see that situation with far too much regularity and frequency where there’s an internal corporate investigation to determine whether or not the corporation is guilty of a crime.

Giving Statements to Lawyers

They bring in an outside lawyer and a good corporate employee sits down and makes a statement to that outside council with the assurance that that outside council is there to help them and there to act as their lawyer. I have a news flash for you. That lawyer is not there to help you. That lawyer is there to help the corporation. Anything you tell that lawyer is admissible against you. It’s admissible against you in any proceeding. If that person is not a lawyer hired by you or retained by you or hired specifically to represent you, that lawyer is not your friend. He’s the friend of the corporation, he’s not the friend of the employee.

You Need Legal Representation

If you find yourself in the cross hairs of an internal corporate investigation you need to make sure that you have a lawyer there representing your interest, not the interest of the corporation. If we can help you, if you’re in that situation give us a call. We’ve done it over and over again. We can explain the pitfalls, we can explain the landmines, we can explain when it’s a good idea for you to make a statement and when it’s not. We can’t help you at all unless you give us a call. Thank you for listening.

By:Dan Cogdell