NET WORK
EMERGING TRENDS SERIES TRENDS IN COMPLIANCE AND CRISIS MANAGEMENT Shelita Stewart, Partner, Hogan Lovells
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY
EMERGING TRENDS SERIES NETWORK
Emerging Trends in Compliance and Crisis Management
Hogan Lovells’ Shelita Stewart BIHC recently spoke with Shelita Stewart, a partner in the Washington, D.C. office of Hogan Lovells. Stewart is in the firm’s Investigations, White Collar, and Fraud practice area. She focuses on corporate compliance, investigations, and crisis management.
to have clarity on ownership for managing specific issues and involvement of legal and compliance in decision making. Also, GCs will want to revisit public disclosures or corporate statements to make sure the company is living up to commitments it has made externally.
Q: W hat major trends do you see in
prevent misconduct and also applies to reactive situations, like crisis events. The more proactive planning a company has in place, the more effective its response will be. What’s important is to not just react when a crisis or a compliance issue occurs, but to have a plan.
compliance and crisis management?
A: T he nature and scope of crisis response is
changing as companies experience unprecedented crises—from the pandemic, to social justice issues, the war in Ukraine, and much more. These crises are not singular incidents, like a data breach or an environmental disaster; they are global disruptors with sustained business and reputational impact. Another trend is increased regulatory oversight, particularly in industries like tech, along with increasing oversight related to environmental, social, and governance (ESG) issues. There is more public pressure from stakeholders—government, investors, consumers, employees, and communities—to hold companies accountable, not only for the quality of goods and services they provide but for how they do business, both within their organizations and as part of the larger global community.
Q: W hat are the implications of these trends for GCs, management, and boards?
A: G Cs, management, and boards should expect
an expanded scope of issues rising to their level for review. This means having current plans in place to oversee these issues and ensuring that procedures work in practice—particularly in remote work environments where traditional forms of communication are changing. It is also important
Q: W hat is a best practice for GCs related to compliance?
A: C ompliance is both proactive mitigation to
Q: R elated to these trends, is there anything that might be flying under GCs’ radar?
A: D epending on an organization’s structure, the
GC may/may not be responsible for compliance. But regardless of the reporting structure, GCs should be proactive in working with their company’s compliance organization to ensure mitigation of legal, compliance, and reputational risks.
Q: W hen and why should a GC or a corporate legal department consider engaging with outside counsel?
A: T he laws governing attorney-client privilege
differ globally and many jurisdictions do not protect in-house counsel communications. An outside advisor can help protect privilege and navigate global investigations and crisis response. External counsel can also offer insights and advice for how similarly situated peer companies in an industry and/ or geography are handling certain issues. Outside counsel provides a valuable perspective that helps a company benchmark how it might want to respond to a particular matter. EMERGING TRENDS INTERVIEW SERIES
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EMERGING TRENDS SERIES NETWORK
About the BIHC Network & Emerging Trends The Black In-House Counsel (BIHC) Network works with legal departments and law firms to advance Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion in the legal profession. We create content, events, networks, and professional development training for corporate legal departments and law firms. A key part of our mission is to showcase the talents of leading lawyers of color in top law firms to in-house legal departments. Emerging Trends features insights from leading partners of color on key trends shaping the business landscape over the next 12 months. Each Emerging Trends briefing provides concise information on what general counsel and boards need to know about and best practices in how to approach this topic.
BIHC is pleased to hear from the following Hogan Lovells partners in the Emerging Trends Series:
Tifarah Roberts Allen
Shelita M. Stewart
Partner
Partner
WASHINGTON, D.C. Practice Group: Corporate & Finance
WASHINGTON, D.C. Practice Group: Litigation, Arbitration, and Employment
Russell Benjamin Hedman
Courtney Devon Taylor
Partner
Partner
DENVER Practice Group: Corporate & Finance
PHILADELPHIA, NEW YORK Practice Group: Litigation, Arbitration, and Employment EMERGING TRENDS INTERVIEW SERIES
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