"Compliance" has become a buzzword, particularly in criminal law. This is a consequence of major international investigations conducted in recent years which have also involved major German corporations.
The term "compliance" has its origins in U.S. law and is difficult to translate into German legal parlance, just as the notion of compliance as a whole is difficult to pin down in the German legal system. After all, is it not self-evident that all legal rules must be complied with?
While the meaningfulness of compliance may remain open for debate, it is impossible to imagine the corporate world without it. It affects multinational DAX corporations and sound SMEs, associations and public sector entities alike. No company and no company executives can afford to ignore the necessity of compliance. The German Federal Court of Justice made sure of this with a decision in 2009, imposing criminal liability on an officer in the company for the "integrity of the area of responsibility he had assumed" ("Criminal liability of the compliance officer").
Today, "compliance" is part of good corporate governance. Properly implemented, it protects the company and its employees and even strengthens the organization's reputation. However, it is important to specifically define the requirements and its implementation must be tailored to the needs of the company. Over-regulation through excessive compliance requirements can in some cases be just as detrimental to corporate goals as no compliance at all.
We are regularly called upon to develop new compliance structures for SMEs or review and revise existing systems. This also includes drafting customized codes of conduct and ongoing compliance monitoring as well as internal staff training. The benefit to the company is clear.
Consulting with experts and having them design and implement a compliance system is the best way to ensure that all legal and commercial aspects are properly taken into account.
