News & Insights

Jack Sharman and Amber Hall Author Law360 Article About COVID-19 Impact on Internal Investigations

March 29, 2020

Lightfoot, Franklin & White, LLC partner Jackson R. Sharman III and associate Amber N. Hall authored an article for Law360 (subscription required) about how the coronavirus pandemic could affect corporate internal investigations. (Read the full article on our website here.)

The piece, titled “Anticipating COVID-19's Effect On Internal Investigations,” explores how new realities, such as widespread remote working, may lead to changes in costs, greater opportunities for potential wrongdoing, and increased complexity and burden for internal investigators.

“COVID-19 poses a paradox: Losing the ability to have personal face-to-face meetings may lead to a world where business colleagues (and internal investigators) will have a peek into personal lives in a way that has never happened before,” write the authors. “In the post-coronavirus world, even a relatively straightforward task — for example, identifying who is a witness or a custodian — will become more challenging.”

Among other issues, they also discuss how differing technology and privacy expectations may affect investigations in this new landscape.

Sharman has practiced law for nearly 30 years and leads Lightfoot’s White Collar Criminal Defense and Corporate Investigations practice. He defends businesses and individuals in civil and criminal white-collar cases, provides guidance during corporate internal investigations and advises clients on how to stay in compliance with the law.

Hall represents clients in the areas of environmental and toxic torts, consumer fraud and bad faith, and product liability litigation. She also has experience helping clients navigate arbitration and mediation.