The pandemic is forcing people to stay at home and conduct work remotely, which is having an impact on time-sensitive investigations that require in-person interviews. In a webinar hosted by the American Conference Institute, Daniel Kahn, a senior deputy chief in the Department of Justice’s Criminal Division’s Fraud Section, told viewers that routine work that involves obtaining documents from overseas and interviewing corporate executives is delayed by stay-at-home orders.^[1]

In a related issue, some companies have reduced their workforce or have had their basic operations curtailed to a minimum due to the pandemic. Kahn said this also poses a problem during investigations.

“‘If the company has brought its compliance [department] down to a skeleton crew, that’s obviously not something we’re going to love,’” he told The Wall Street Journal.^[2] “‘We need to understand why the company would have done that and what steps they’re taking to ensure that the company is still meeting its legal and compliance obligations.’”