, Columnist
What Does It Take to Get a Bank to Plead Guilty?
What would it take for the government to ever require that a U.S. bank plead guilty to a criminal charge? There aren't many precedents, but here's a start: It would help if the bank already had a buyer in waiting.
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With the newsout that JPMorgan Chase & Co. is close to reaching a deferred-prosecution agreement over its dealings with Ponzi scheme maestro Bernard Madoff, the usual (and justified) carpingover JPMorgan's status as a too-big-to-jail bank is in full force.
So now is as good a time as any to ask: What would it take for the government to ever require that a U.S. bank plead guilty to a criminal charge? There aren't many precedents, but here's a start: It would help if the bank already had a buyer in waiting.