Corporate Governance & Compliance Advisory

Cahill advises boards of directors, audit and special committees, and directors and officers of publicly held and private companies in significant corporate governance matters, including investigations and crisis situations involving various types of alleged misconduct, including accounting fraud and earnings management, market manipulation, disclosure issues, insider trading, bribery, corruption, and fraud. The firm is widely regarded for its ability to develop practical remedial measures and compliance plans that appropriately address potential liabilities, along with thoughtful, productive responses to governmental and regulatory inquiries, all while managing media and reputational impacts. 

Increased regulation and enforcement activity will continue to result in serious risks for companies and their officers and directors. When such legal crises develop, immediate and appropriate responses are critical. From whistleblower investigations to proxy fights and multi-billion dollar lawsuits, our lawyers help companies respond appropriately to their board, shareholders, media scrutiny and federal and state regulatory agencies.

Cahill also advises regularly on corporate compliance and corporate social responsibility (“CSR”) matters.  Our practice in these areas is at the intersection of our experience in crisis management, internal investigations, securities litigation, enforcement defense, and compliance program design.  Large companies frequently face CSR scrutiny concerning their corporate philanthropy programs, worker safety, and environmental and social impacts on the communities where they operate.  In addition to challenges associated with meeting the corporate citizenship expectations of customers and other stakeholders, corporate outreach often brings regulatory risk.  For example, corporate charitable donations are a significant risk area for compliance with the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act and other anti-corruption laws. Whether it is in response to a media inquiry, government information request, whistleblower report, or as part of a proactive compliance review, Cahill has guided numerous companies across a range of sectors in identifying compliance risks and implementing CSR best practices.

Our recent experience includes:

• Representing Walmart’s Audit Committee in the multi-year FCPA investigation by the DOJ and SEC and overseeing the enhancement of the company’s global compliance program.
• Providing corporate governance support for the benefit of the Afghanistan National Institute of Music (ANIM), which is being reconstituted in Portugal following the school community’s evacuation from Afghanistan in late 2021. Cahill had previously provided time-sensitive legal advice in support of efforts to evacuate students and faculty of ANIM, including advising on certain contractual and cross-border legal issues related to the final leg of their journey to freedom.
• Advising a multinational retailer in developing, implementing, and testing corporate giving procedures for donations to NGOs and government entities worldwide. Our work addressed potential anti-corruption and anti-bribery concerns while also ensuring the retailer’s ability to maximize its philanthropic impact in the communities where it operates.
• Enhancing processes through which a multinational company monitors the structural and fire safety at its physical locations worldwide.
• Guiding a prominent non-profit organization in an internal investigation surrounding accusations of sexual misconduct by one of its employees.
• Representing a group of U.S. apparel retailers in an investigation by an activist NGO into potential violations of foreign labor and environmental regulations in the retailers’ indirect supply chain.
• Advised on CSR compliance standards for the vertically-integrated supply chain of a retailer with manufacturing hubs around the globe, many of them in China and Southeast Asia.