What is White Collar Crime? 

White collar crime refers to those offenses that are designed to produce financial gain using some form of deception. This type of crime is usually committed by people in the business world who, as a result of their job position, are able to gain access to large amounts of other people’s money. White collar crime does not involve violent, drug-related, or overtly illegal activities. In fact, perpetrators are typically involved in otherwise lawful businesses and may hold respectable positions in the community prior to the discovery of their fraudulent schemes. 

Most white collar crime is investigated and prosecuted by federal authorities. This is not good news for the accused, as federal conviction rates are high, and U.S. District Attorney’s offices have substantial resources available to pursue wrongdoers. There is a common misconception among the general public that defendants convicted of white collar crimes will be treated with leniency. In reality, sentences handed down for purely financial crimes can be as long or longer than sentences handed down in cases involving violence or drugs. 

Common Types of Offenses 

A broad range of white collar crimes are perpetrated each day in the United States, the variety of these crimes being limited only by the imagination of those who commit them. Examples include tax evasion, insider trading, insurance fraud, bribery, embezzlement, and money laundering. Some offenses are committed on a small scale, like when individuals filing for liquidation bankruptcy fail to disclose personal assets on their petition. Other times, a single fraud can affect the lives of hundreds or thousands of people, such as investment frauds committed by securities brokers. 

The largest and most infamous example of white collar crime ever discovered took the form of a giant Ponzi scheme. Named after a swindler who operated nearly a century ago, Ponzi schemes involve the solicitation and misappropriation of investment money. Early clients are not paid from profits, but rather from investment funds collected from later clients. In this particular case, New York money manager Bernard Madoff used such a scheme to rob clients of an estimated $65 billion. He pleaded guilty in 2009 and was sentenced to 150 years in prison. 

Dealing with an Investigation 

One of the unique aspects of white collar crime is that suspects will often become aware of the fact that they are being investigated days, weeks, or even months prior to their arrest. While this can cause suspects to experience fear and apprehension about the future, it also provides an opportunity not available to those who are arrested without warning. By retaining a criminal defense attorney at the first indication of trouble, individuals may be able to considerably reduce their exposure to criminal liability and perhaps avoid charges all together. 

A defense attorney will not directly impede the investigative efforts of law enforcement. However, individuals who are represented by counsel are far less likely to unknowingly waive constitutional legal protections, or relent to the demands of investigators when there is no need to do so. And while plea bargaining typically occurs following an arrest, a skilled criminal defense lawyer will act proactively, engaging the prosecuting attorneys early in the process. Many cases are successfully resolved through negotiation before formal court proceedings begin. 

Strategies for Trial 

In an ordinary criminal trial, several witnesses and police officers are called to testify, some physical exhibits are introduced into evidence, and the entire trial is finished in a day or two. By contrast, cases alleging white collar crimes may take weeks to try before the jury. The number of exhibits alone can be overwhelming, with potentially thousands of documents, emails, and other items of evidence that must be accepted by the judge and reviewed by the jury members. Fortunately for defendants, the size and complexities of these trials can sometimes be a strategic advantage. 

The burden of proving a case belongs to the government. So while government prosecutors are inundating the jury with the volumes of financial records necessary to prove their case, the defendant can present his or her argument in a concise, simple manner. After all, it only takes a single flaw in the government’s case to obtain an acquittal. If the defendant can identify a flaw, and elucidate it succinctly, jury members will be grateful to the defendant for making their job easier. Poking a single hole in a complex case can be a winning trial strategy for white collar offenses, but it requires the ingenuity and finesse of an accomplished defense lawyer. 

White Collar Crime Defense Attorneys 

If you are in danger of being prosecuted for a white collar crime, your career and reputation are on the line. Worse yet, your very freedom may be at stake. With so much to lose, you need to retain a specialist. Contact a white collar crime lawyer today for advice about your situation. 

Short Essay on Legal Education in India

by Aliva Manjari

In the present age Legal Education in India is not satisfactory. It requires medical changes. The law in an instrument of change. It plays a very

important role in the reconstruction of the society; our Constitution has given guarantee to its citizen’s social, economic and political justice.

The Directive Principles of State Policy as enshrined in the Constitution of India, attempt to transform society, social economic and political

aspirations of the people have changed.

We are governed by Law; therefore, a change in the system of legal education has become inevitable. We in India still cherish and nourish

that very education system which was established by Britons in India.

Judges, Lawyers and Law teachers could not change basic postulates of common law. They do not play any role in the formulation of policies,

law colleges and universities perennially followed traditional path.

We want Jurists of eminence and judges of repute. Since law is one of the social sciences, therefore, the study of history politics, economics

and sociology should be liked with the study of law.

It shall be having new vision to lawyers and Jurists; Language is the life of Law. The scientific knowledge of language is essential for every

student of Law. Unfortunately our students know very little about the languages.

It is desirable that basic knowledge of the language should be imported to law students. The study of law along with social sciences and

language shall improve legal education.

The examination system of our universities is defective. It is illusion. It is out dated and obsolete. It is hardly test or examination. Legal

Education requires special attention in the present context. Law classes are overcrowded.

There is birth of law teachers, the Bar council of India could not properly regulates legal education. The resolution passed by bar council of

India is not implemented. Law classes in our country have become index of unemployment. Lectures delivered by teachers should be

supported by important cases. The basic concept of law should be thought. Moot courts are very important for legal education. Standard and

cheap books should be published by the proper authorities.

For the restriction on guess paper, immediate law is desirable. Admission in law classes should be according to standard of the student’s

group discussion, seminars and tutorials are also useful for the proper understanding of law proper arrangements for the courts visits and

practical training to the law student will be very helpful to the prospective lawyers. A minimum court attendance should also be fixed along with

their subjects of law students. A minimum financial assistance should also be provided by Bar Council of India to the poor as well as to the

intelligent law students.

According to Swami Vivekananda- “That country and that nation that do not respect women have never become great, nor ever be in future.”

According to Historian Romilla Thapper- “Within the Indian sub-continent there have been infinite variations on the status of women diverging according to culture malice, family structure, class, caste, property rights and morals.”

Tagores said, “Womens are the ornaments of society”. The society was male dominated and he ruled mainly by ethics and morals. But now a day’s womens are enjoying the topmost supremacy and these have won over intelligence and mental capacity of the men. Today if it was that the society was “Male-Dominated” then india wouldn’t have produced highlighting examples such as “P.T.Usha-The Women Athlete”, “Lata Mangeshkar-The Nightingale and the Singer”, “Sonia Gandhi-Political” and “Klpana Chawla-The Indian Astronaut”. Today the proverb given above has proved true. A woman is the pillar of a family, and concussively that of a nation. The statue of liberty which is symbol of peace and liberty is none other than that of a woman. Therefore, respect women and every life. [2] 

In the past, women were treated as mere slaves. As they belong to the weaker sex, men used to keep them under thumb.

They were denied freedom. They were kept like dumb cattle within the four walls of the house. Indeed, they had no rights.

Their most sacred duty was to obey blindly.

Though the conditions in the country are fast changing, yet women are still treated, in some respects, in the same old way.

No one feels happy in the home at the birth of a female child. Even an only daughter is supposed to be a curse for the

family. She is regarded as a decree of lakhs of rupees on the parents. Further, as a wife, she has always to obey her

husband. “Theirs not to reason why, theirs but to do and die.” was the motto for them. Even educated and modernized

husbands want to see their wives confined within the four walls. The noble professions of the outside world are considered

to be of no concern to them. Their husbands, they may be good or bad, are their lords and gods.

Those changes are beneficial which come gradually. Our country is changing politically, economically and socially, at a

swift speed. The condition of women is also gradually changing. They have begun to take their due place in free India as is

evident from the following facts.

In free India, women cannot be kept as sheer domestic servants. They have to play their vital role in the development of

the country. That is why more and more girls are getting education. No distinction is now made in matters of education

between boys and girls. Education is bound to give them place of honour in society.

It is for the first time in the history of our country that women have been given equal voting right with men. It clearly

means that women will now take an active part in outside affairs also. Their voice will now be as forceful and important as

that of men. No politician of leader can now afford to neglect, or oppose their rights. They are becoming equal partners in

the making, or the dismissing, of a Government.

Hindu law has been changed and modified. Far reaching changes have been introduced in the Hindu Marriage Act. Women

have been given right to divorce in certain cases. This is a very important change. They have been given protection in other

ways also against the cruelly of the husbands. Besides this, the Hindu Succession Act has given to the daughter the right  to

the property of her parents. These reforms have secured for women an honorable status in society.

Our constitution has given equal rights to women. No distinction has been made on the basis of caste, religion or sex. Their

rights have thus been safeguarded. Reservation for women in state assemblies, parliament and the upper house is apt to be

enacted in near future.

Many a women has begun to occupy high position in the life of our country. There are a number of lady minister and

deputy ministers. A woman, late Mrs. Indira

Gandhi was the Prime Minister of the country and a leader world stature. Besides this, women are taking to the profession

increasing number. Today there are women who are competent police which direction the wind is blowing. The observance

of the international women’s year in 1975, gave further impetus to the movement for the emancipation of women.

Attention has thus been focused on problems peculiar to women in India.

– Cyber crime is the latest and perhaps the most complicated problem in the cyber world. The term “Cyber Crime” has nowhere been defined

in any statute or Act passed or enacted by the Indian Parliament.

Any criminal activity that uses a computer either as an instrumentality, target or a means for perpetuating further crimes comes within the

ambit of cyber crime.

It is rapidly evolving from simple e-mail mischief where offenders send obscene e-mail, to more serious offences like theft of information, e-

mail bombing to crashing servers etc.

The types of cyber crimes include pornography, cyber fraud, defamation, cyber stalking, harassment, IPR theft, data hostage, money

laundering, phishing, e-mail bombing, cyber war, illegal EFT.

Cyber crime is different and more heinous than conventional crime as in cyber crime; the crime is committed in an electronic medium and here

means read is not a requirement but is rather a general rule under the penal provisions of the Information Technology Act. The Indian

Parliament considered it necessary to give effect to the resolution by which U.N.

General Assembly adopted Model Law on Electronic Commerce adopted by the United Nations Commission on Trade Law. As a

consequence of which the Information Technology Act, 2000 was passed. This Act was a welcome step at a time when there was no

legislation on this field. The Act has however during its application proved to be inadequate and there are certain loopholes in the Act.

Cyber Crime in the Act is neither comprehensive nor exhaustive. The Information Technology Act has not dealt with cyber nuisance, cyber

stalking, and cyber defamation and so on. Cases of spam, hacking, stalking and e-mail fraud are rampant although cyber crimes cells have

been set-up in major cities. The problem is that most cases remain unreported due to lack of awareness.

Capacity of human mind is unfathomable. It is not possible to eliminate cyber crime from the cyber space. However, it is quite possible to

check them.

The home user segment is the largest recipient of cyber attacks as they are less likely to have established security measures in place and

therefore it is necessary that people should be made aware of their rights and duties.

Users must try and save any electronic information trail on their computers, use of anti-virus software, firewalls, use of intrusion detection

system etc. and further making the application of the laws more stringent to check crime.

INDIAN LEGAL SYSTEM –PROBLEM AND CHALLANGES

The Judiciary interprets laws enacted by the legislature and dispenses justice according to those laws. The judiciary must act independently without fear or favor. The judges must be honest and men of courage and integrity. However, it must be remembered that the Indian legal system is a legacy of our colonial rulers and with the passing of time many evils have crept into it and it fails to satisfy the aspiration of the people. Hence there is urgent need of a complete overhaul of judicial machinery.

Honesty and integrity of the Judges must be given too priority. The judges should not merely be honest but also seem to be so. Beside being honest, fearless and independent, they must also be learned and wise. They must have sound legal knowledge, and must also know how to apply that legal knowledge to the cases before them. They must be able to separate the grain of truth from the chaff of falsehood. They must be firm and above suspicion so that they may decide a case fearlessly and give their judgment without fear or favor. They must have a conscience so that they may tell themselves at the end of each day that have done their best according to the light that is within them.

There is something in the very nature of the office of a judge and the function he performs that demands that he should be a person of high integrity, whatever may be the moral norms prevailing in other walks of life. The judiciary has neither the power of the purse not that of the sword. Its most valuable asset in the confidence it inspires and the respect it evokes for this

capacity to redress the wrongs of those knocking at the door of the Courts and to keep the scales even in any dispute between the rich and the poor, the mighty and the weak, the State and the Citizens, without fear or favor. This can only be ensured if the judiciary is manned by persons who cannot be lured by pecuniary or other temptations or by rewards or undue power and authority. Once the image of the judiciary is tarnished because of the doing of some of its members and its credibility goes down, the loss is not merely that of the judiciary, the nation itself is deprived of the most stabilizing element in the even flow of its life.

Once an impression prevails that justice is a purchasable commodity and those who administer it can be tempted, the common man would be left with no forum to look for redress of the grievances. There is nothing which rankles in the human so such as a brooding sense of injustice. We must remember that in the final analysis the people are the judges and that every trail is a trail of our judiciary system also. Its strength and weakness, its success and failure, its utility and credibility, the respect would depend ultimately upon the way it satisfies the hopes and aspirations of the people in quest of justice.

The problem of delay and the accumulation of huge arrears of cases both in the lower-courts, the High Courts, and the Supreme Court have assumed serious dimensions and invited a lot of criticism of the entire legal system. The causes of this delay are many. There are lacunas within the law itself of which clever lawyers take undue advantage and seek adjournments on personal grounds, for the benefit of their clients. Justice delayed is justice denied. The flaws in the legal system give rise to unlimited frivolous suits, the purpose being not to seek redress but to cause harassment to the opponent. This is one of the most important causes of the accumulation of arrears.

Lok Adalats are being held constantly in some one chosen centre or the other, but they touch merely the tip of the iceberg. The expansion of judiciary has not kept pace in the lower courts, the Judges fail to assert themselves either out of lethargy or fear of tussle with the lawyers leading to strikes etc. The problem of delay must be faced boldly and quickly both by reforming the legal system and by eliminating extraneous factors responsible for such delay. This existing system must be improved to meet modern requirements.

The Constitution of India provides for a very delicate process of consultation between the executive and the judiciary in the matter of appointment of judges through Supreme Court and the High Courts. A qualitative improvement in judicial appointments can only be achieved of all the constitutional functionaries involved in the consultative process strive to attract and find the best talent of character and dedication. Extraneous consideration such as caste, community, religion, and politics must not prejudice the selection of judges.

But we must remember that the judicial system and legal machinery do not work in isolation from society. They are integral parts of the entire social and political system. Their working depends on the co-operation of other elements. We must have a non-political, efficient, dedicated honest and upright judiciary which must have a non-political, efficient, dedicated, honest and upright judiciary which must be aware of its responsibilities and remain fearless. Only such persons should be appointed as Judges, who enjoy the confidence and trust of the

nation. They must be allowed to function is such a manner that the country is assured of fair and equal justice along with the achievement of political, social and economic justice.

If judges with special acquaintance or competence or those who have specialized in certain branches of law are allotted cases under that particular branch of law, the time taken by judges who are not familiar with the branch, specially of it is a specialized branch. Benches formed of competent judges should be allowed to function for a reasonable length of time and the judges constituting the Bench should know well in advance when the Bench is to break, so that there may be no part-heard cases left by the Bench after is it dismantled. This however requires discipline on the part of judges themselves. They must sit in time. They must not absent themselves from the Court simply because there are certain rights to have some leave of absence. This a matter on which the internal discipline of judges is very essential. They must realize that they hold a high and dignified position in society.

The business of the courts should be so arranged as to avoid the situation of old cases getting older and of new cases receiving priority. Lack of proper listing listing and proper notice of new cases and the given priority to old cases is a factor which contributes to the accumulation of arrears and to mal-administration of justices. Matters involving common questions of law must be grouped and posted together for hearing before the same Bench not only to save the precious time of court but to avoid conflicting decisions and ensure a uniformity in approach leading to certainly and continuity in the progressive development of law.

The management of the court system should be modernized by taking advantage of new technology. While computers have invaded all fields of activity in the country and modern technological advances have radically altered the working in offices, the judiciary has remained outside the mainstream of this technological advancement. It is, therefore, necessary that every High Court must have a computerized system for keeping a catalogue of pending cases, a computerized library index of its decisions to avoid conflicting decisions, and adequate number of word processors, photo-copying machines and electronic typewriters, a computerized micro-filming centre for maintenance of record and a telex system connecting the Supreme Court with other Courts. This is essential for inter-communication and interaction among different courts. Judges can help by strictly adhering to the hours of work, by exercising the caution and restraint in allowing adjournments which are the bane of our present-day court proceedings, and restricting oral arguments to the minimum by writing clear an concise judgments and delivering them promptly within a short periods after the conclusion of the hearing.

Members of the legal professions can and should also help. They must discipline themselves in order to be effective ministers of justice. The arguments should be prudent preparation before presentation in the court either in pleadings or the advocacy. There is a tendency in our country to rust to the court at the slightest provocation. If lawyers could adopt a positive approach and strive to arrive at reasonable out of court settlements, the time and expense of the litigants would be saved to a great extent and the inflow of cases into courts would be reduced, thereby facilitating expeditious disposal of pending cases.

To-day a large number of litigation in superior courts is concerned with interim relief's and interim orders. If we go by the number of interim orders subsisting for years together without

the matter coming up for final hearing due to dilatory tactics, one gets the impression that the majority in the profession have come to regard interim relief as final reliefs. The number of frivolous and vexatious petitions being filed is increasing by leaps and bounds. An overwhelming majority of special leave petition filed in the Supreme Court are dismissed and yet there are no sign of decrease in filing such petitions. Frequently adjournments are sough upsetting the schedule of work. The responsibility to comply with the instructions of delays. Lawyers frequently indulge in lengthy arguments before the court. There is need to reduce the quantum of oral arguments prepared with great caution and precision. Judicial time can be saved to a great extent and the settlement of cases expedited.

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