Criminal law scholars ask Supreme Court to overturn D.C. Circuit's over-broad interpretation of Sarbanes-Oxley Act

Client(s) Criminal law scholars

On behalf of four criminal law scholars, Jones Day filed an amicus brief in the United States Supreme Court supporting a petition for certiorari challenging the government's over-broad interpretation of part of the Sarbanes-Oxley Act, 18 U.S.C. Section 1519. The brief addressed the decision of a panel of the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit that applied Section 1519 to knowingly providing false information on government forms, rather than limiting the law to obstructing an investigation or formal proceeding. Such an expansive reading, the scholars argued, poses a serious threat to individual liberty by threatening Congress's role to define criminal offenses, evading the individual right to a jury trial, and undermining the core constitutional principle of fair notice.