The SEC announced November 12 that it has entered its first DPA (deferred prosecution agreement) with an individual respondent. In a DPA, the SEC rewards substantial assistance to an important investigation by agreeing not to prosecute so long as the cooperator complies with certain specified undertakings. DPA’s are part of Enforcement’s Cooperation Program, which adopted a suite of tools that are a long-standing part of the white-collar-crime canon. Those tools include:

- Cooperation Agreements –recommending some credit for substantial assistance;

- Deferred Prosecution Agreements – formal agreements foregoing prosecution in return for a cooperator’s substantial assistance and compliance with specified undertakings over a specific time;

- Non-Prosecution Agreements – formal agreements not to prosecute for a cooperating respondent’s substantial assistance and compliance with specified undertakings.