Norwegian Approach to Private Internal Investigations: An Empirical Study of Mandates for Fraud Examiners

2017 ◽  
Vol 29 (1) ◽  
pp. 48-58
Author(s):  
Petter Gottschalk
Keyword(s):  
Empirical Study ◽  
Law Firms ◽  
Principal Agent ◽  
Financial Crime ◽  
Opportunistic Behavior ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Past ◽  
Private And Public ◽  
Opening Up ◽  
Principal Agent Relationship

This article applies principal–agent relationship theory through an empirical study of private investigators’ mandates for fraud examiners in Norway. The business of private internal investigations by external fraud examiners has grown remarkably in the recent decades. Law firms and auditing firms are hired by private and public organizations to reconstruct the past when there is suspicion of misconduct and potential financial crime. Most reports of investigation are kept secret to the public and often also to the police, even when there is evidence of financial crime by white-collar criminals. For this study, we were able to identify and retrieve a total of 49 investigation reports in Norway for the 10-year period from 2006 to 2016. Reports are studied in terms of mandates defining the motive, purpose, scope, tasks, and goals. We find that mandates are deficient, thereby opening up for opportunistic behavior by both parties in the principal–agent relationship.

Evaluation of Fraud Examinations: A Contingent Approach to Private Internal Investigations

2017 ◽  
Vol 13 (4) ◽  
pp. 386-396
Author(s):  
Petter Gottschalk
Keyword(s):  
Criminal Justice ◽  
Empirical Study ◽  
Criminal Justice System ◽  
Justice System ◽  
Public Organizations ◽  
Law Firms ◽  
Financial Crime ◽  
The Past ◽  
Private And Public ◽  
Contingent Approach

Abstract The business of private internal investigations by external fraud examiners has grown remarkably in recent decades. Law firms and auditing firms are hired by private and public organizations to reconstruct the past when there is suspicion of misconduct and potential financial crime. This article has presented an empirical study of 49 private internal investigations in Norway that were publicly available. A contingent approach to investigations was applied, where private investigations at later stages are facing different mandates than investigations at earlier stages in the criminal justice system. This research has been exploratory by indicating that fraud examiners make a higher level contribution at later stages in the criminal justice system.

Technology Transfer

2011 ◽  
pp. 100-113
Author(s):  
Russ Lea
Keyword(s):  
Technology Transfer ◽  
Public Good ◽  
Public Funding ◽  
Arms Race ◽  
The Public ◽  
Economic Competitiveness ◽  
The Past ◽  
Private And Public ◽  
Technology Parks ◽  
Academic Earmarking

In the past three decades, economic competitiveness has morphed from an international concern (e.g. outcompete Japan) to a regional concern (e.g. knowledge clusters) to one where individual universities are in an “arms race” with each other for private and public funding (including licensing royalties, retaining star faculty, pursuing academic earmarking, developing technology parks and incubators, etc.). The greatest benefit that Bayh-Dole afforded universities, namely, to promote the utilization of their research for the public good, sometimes seems distant to the perceived objectives whereby universities attempt to maximize their own resources, including commercialization profits from faculty innovations that are ultimately transferred to the economy.

scholarly journals Work as a central life interest for legal professionals

2005 ◽  
Vol 31 (1) ◽  
Author(s):  
Jacques Genis ◽  
Taryn Wallis
Keyword(s):  
South Africa ◽  
Public Sector ◽  
Law Firms ◽  
Work Centrality ◽  
Public And Private ◽  
Legal Professionals ◽  
The Public ◽  
Public Sector Employees ◽  
Private And Public ◽  
Two Sectors

Dubin’s theory of Central Life Interests (CLIs) was used to investigate whether work is a CLI for legal professionals in South Africa. The research also served as a comparative exploration between the public and private sectors based on their work centrality and work orientation. 59 employees from three public sector organisations and 27 employees from various private sector law firms completed questionnaires. Contrary to Dubin’s theory, results indicated that two-thirds of respondents did not have work as a CLI. Also, contrary to previous work on private and public sector employees, some interesting similarities emerged between the two sectors. Opsomming Dubin (1992) se teorie van Sentrale Lewensbelangstellings was gebruik om te ondersoek of werk ’n sentrale lewensbelangstelling is vir individue in die Suid-Afrikaanse regsprofessie. Die navorsing was ook ’n vergelykende ondersoek tussen die publieke en privaat sektore met betrekking tot hul werk sentraliteit en werk orientasie. 59 werknemers van drie publieke organisasies en 27 werknemers van verskeie privaat firmas het vraelyse beantwoord. Teenstellig met Dubin se teorie het resultate gewys dat vir twee-derdes van die deelnemers werk nie ’n sentrale lewensbelangstelling was nie. Daar was ook interessante resultate wat te voorskyn gekom het, wat teenstrydig was met vorige navorsing op werknemers in die privaat en publieke sektore.

scholarly journals The Economic Theory of Public Enforcement of Law

2000 ◽  
Vol 38 (1) ◽  
pp. 45-76 ◽  
Author(s):  
A. Mitchell Polinsky ◽  
Steven Shavell
Keyword(s):  
Economic Theory ◽  
Principal Agent ◽  
Repeat Offenders ◽  
Public Enforcement ◽  
Legal Rules ◽  
The Public ◽  
Imperfect Knowledge ◽  
Principal Agent Relationship

This article surveys the theory of the public enforcement of law—the use of public agents (inspectors, tax auditors, police, prosecutors) to detect and to sanction violators of legal rules. We first present the basic elements of the theory, focusing on the probability of imposition of sanctions, the magnitude and form of sanctions, and the rule of liability. We then examine a variety of extensions of the central theory, concerning accidental harms, costs of imposing fines, errors, general enforcement, marginal deterrence, the principal-agent relationship, settlements, self-reporting, repeat offenders, imperfect knowledge about the probability and magnitude of fines, and incapacitation.

Private Law Firms in the Public Interest: The Organizational and Institutional Determinants of Pro Bono Participation, 1994–2005

2017 ◽  
Vol 42 (02) ◽  
pp. 543-564 ◽  
Author(s):  
Steven A. Boutcher
Keyword(s):  
Institutional Environment ◽  
Social Process ◽  
Organizational Dynamics ◽  
Professional Status ◽  
Law Firms ◽  
Organizational Goals ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Past ◽  
Institutional Determinants ◽  
Pro Bono

Despite longstanding concern that the commercialization of legal practice is antithetical to professionalism, corporate law firms have dramatically increased their pro bono participation over the past few decades. What explains this paradox? This article examines the organizational and institutional determinants of pro bono participation across an elite field of large law firms. I find that pro bono work is only partly rooted in internal organizational dynamics and that the institutional environment appears more important for explaining variation in pro bono participation. These findings indicate that large firms may be more drawn to pro bono work as a social process tied to professional status and legitimacy than to concrete, rational organizational goals. Moreover, these findings point to the importance of the interstitial space that these firms inhabit between the legal profession and corporate market as an especially important factor in facilitating, rather than dampening, pro bono participation.

scholarly journals MORAL DISSONANCE AT WORK AND EMPLOYEES’ PSYCHO-PHYSICAL HEALTH

2020 ◽  
Vol 13 (3) ◽  
pp. 311-332
Author(s):  
Nebojša Majstorović ◽  
Božana Vidaković
Keyword(s):  
Public Sector ◽  
Physical Health ◽  
Ethical Standards ◽  
Educational Levels ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Past ◽  
Health Measures ◽  
Private And Public ◽  
Corrupt Behavior ◽  
First Time

The main objective of this research was to determine the frequency of the occurrence of moral dissonance in the workplace, and its possible consequences for employees’ psycho-physical health. External ethical dissonance at work is defined as a condition stemming from a discrepancy between the employee action and ethical standards in place in the organization, and is primarily caused by the unethical pressure of the management. A sample of 311 employees of both genders, employed both in the private and public sector, with different educational levels and of different ages and seniority, have applied measures of psycho-physical health, measures of frequency of ethical dissonance at work, and the Demographic Characteristics Questionnaire. Results show that out of 311 respondents, 72% of them report that they have been in a state of external ethical dissonance at least once in the past year, so we conducted further analyses on data gathered from these 224 employees. Factor analysis of the SUED2R questionnaire has revealed that measures of external ethical dissonance are classified into three indicators, according to the type of unethical pressure: lying for the benefit of the organization, harassing others, and supporting wrong people in the organization. We have found that the incidence of such ethical dissonance is significantly higher in the private than in the public sector, that the increased incidence of all three forms of work dissonance is associated with an increased incidence of symptoms of health disorders. It is concluded that the pressure to act unethically (corrupt behavior) probably contributes to the deterioration of employees’ health. The significance of these findings is that, for the first time, they clearly demonstrate a systematic link between pressuring employees into corrupt behavior, and their psycho-physical health.

scholarly journals What is so theological about a faculty of theology at a public university? Athens – Berlin – Pretoria

2019 ◽  
Vol 75 (4) ◽  
Author(s):  
Johan Buitendag
Keyword(s):  
Theological Education ◽  
Public University ◽  
Christian University ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Past ◽  
University Of Pretoria ◽  
The Public Sphere ◽  
Definition Of ◽  
The University ◽  
Opening Up

In this article, the author engages with the question ‘what is so theological about theological education?’, which he calls a genealogy of theology. This matter is approached from a very specific vantage point as the author was the former dean of the Faculty of Theology and Religion at the University of Pretoria (South Africa) and has engaged in this research project over the past 5 years, as the Faculty was under severe review as to its composition, and ultimately its very future. This article endeavours to bring to the surface the underlying theology of the author and the paradigm he is operating from. It concludes with a definition of theology as he sees it, but with the explicit qualification of it being situated at a research-intensive university competing for a notable position on the ranking indexes of world universities. A new niche is thus opening up for theology (vis-à-vis a seminary or even a Christian university), namely, a ‘scholarly endeavour of believers in the public sphere in order to inquire into a multi-dimensional reality in a manner that matters’.

scholarly journals Pottery Goes Public. Performing Archaeological Research Amid the Audience

2018 ◽  
Vol 4 (1) ◽  
pp. 62-80 ◽  
Author(s):  
Loes Opgenhaffen ◽  
Martina Revello Lami ◽  
Ivan Kisjes
Keyword(s):  
3D Imaging ◽  
Imaging Techniques ◽  
Academic Research ◽  
Archaeological Research ◽  
Ceramic Analysis ◽  
The Public ◽  
The Past ◽  
Research Questions ◽  
Analytical Tools ◽  
Opening Up

Abstract The project Pottery Goes Public explores the potential of 3D analytical tools to assess to what extent they can provide us with new interpretations and insights into the technological aspects of ancient pottery manufacturing. However, developing innovative 3D imaging techniques for ceramic analysis is not the only aim of the project. Since its inception, Pottery Goes Public has been designed to involve a wider audience not only into the study of ancient potting techniques, but also into the very process of carrying out the research. As advocated by the proponents of a reflexive approach to archaeology, in order to make the past relevant to contemporary society it is imperative for the archaeologist to include all interested parties into every stage of the analysis, from the formulation of the research questions to the dissemination of outputs. In this sense, the deployment of modern 3D technologies proved to be an indisputably powerful medium of communication and interaction with the public at large. Performing live archaeological research with cutting edge tools is a key step towards opening up academic research to multiple actors and actively engaging them with the archaeological interpretative process.

STRATEGY OF LIBERALIZATION AND PROBLEMS OF STATE REGULATION OF AZERBAIJAN ECONOMY

2019 ◽  
Vol 86 (3) ◽  
pp. 139-151
Author(s):  
G. Z. Yuzbashieva ◽  
A. M. Mustafayev ◽  
R. A. Imanov
Keyword(s):  
Economic Growth ◽  
Social Protection ◽  
State Intervention ◽  
Economic Transformation ◽  
State Regulation ◽  
Economic Relations ◽  
The Public ◽  
Private And Public ◽  
Sectoral Development ◽  
Market Relations

The indicators that determine the change in the macroeconomic situation in the economy of Azerbaijan in 2010–2017, as well as the conditions for increasing the effectiveness of state intervention in solving economic problems are analyzed. It is noted that it is not the size of the public sector that becomes important, but its qualitative component (management and redistribution of resources and revenues, coordination of government intervention in economic relations). The main reasons limiting economic growth are identified, and the mechanisms for overcoming them are disclosed, since economic growth is of particular importance in the transformational period of state development. It substantiates the assertion that the forms and methods of state regulation should be the result of a reasonable combination of the private and public sectors of the economy to more effectively achieve the goal of economic development of the country and increase the welfare of the population. To this end, it is advisable to limit the actions of market forces and find a rational ratio of market and government measures that stimulate economic growth and development.It is shown that in the near future the development of the economy of Azerbaijan should be focused on the transition to the integration of various models of economic transformation; at the same time, “attraction of investments” should be carried out by methods of stimulating consumption, and the concept of a socially oriented economy, which the state also implements, should prevail, thereby ensuring social protection of the population and at the same time developing market relations. Disproportions in regional and sectoral development are also noted, which are the result of an ineffective distribution of goods produced, inadequate investment in human capital, a low level of coordination and stimulation of economic growth and development.

Concealment of Illegally Obtained Assets in Nigeria: Revisiting the Role of the Churches in Money Laundering

2020 ◽  
Vol 28 (1) ◽  
pp. 106-121
Author(s):  
Kato Gogo Kingston
Keyword(s):  
Economic Growth ◽  
Money Laundering ◽  
Financial Crime ◽  
The Past ◽  
Key Drivers ◽  
Nigerian Government

Financial crime in Nigeria – including money laundering – is ravaging Nigeria's economic growth. In the past few years, the Nigerian government has made efforts to tackle money laundering by enacting laws and setting up several agencies to enforce the laws. However, there are substantial loopholes in the regulatory and enforcement regimes. This article seeks to unravel the involvement of the churches as key drivers in money laundering crimes in Nigeria. It concludes that the permissive secrecy which enables churches to conceal the names of their financiers and donors breeds criminality on an unimaginable scale.

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