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Christopher DeLacy, Charles E. Borden and John S. Irving
are partners in Holland & Knight'sWashington, D.C.office
When interacting with the federal government, including the
legislative branch, it is essential that all statements, whether
written or verbal, be completely truthful. This is the case when
providing testimony and also when submitting documents to Congress,
including Lobbying Disclosure Act (LDA) filings, private sponsor travel certifications, and
financial disclosure forms.
The U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York recently
secured a guilty plea in connection with lying to
Congress – a violation of 18 U.S.C. § 1001. It is important to note
that Section 1001 prohibits knowingly making a material false
statement to any of the three branches of the federal government in
a matter within their jurisdiction, regardless of whether those
statements are under oath, which would be required for a conviction
for perjury under 18 U.S.C. §§ 1621, 1623.
Although prosecutions for lying to Congress are rare, there have
been several high-profile cases over the years. For example, in
2009 the U.S. Attorney for the District of Columbia indicted a
former professional athlete for lying to Congress (he was
ultimately acquitted in 2012) and in 1990, a former National
Security Advisor was convicted of lying to Congress and obstructing
a congressional investigation (this conviction was overturned in
1996). As incoming House Judiciary Chairman Jerrold Nadler (D-NY)
recently stated: "[l]ying to Congress is a serious
crime with serious consequences." Similarly, Senate
Intelligence Committee Chairman Richard Burr (R-NC)
recently stated that "...you cannot lie to
Congress without consequences."
Accordingly, individuals and entities should take steps to
ensure all statements made to Congress are completely truthful and
now is a good time to review relevant internal and external
government affairs activities. Likewise, during the course of a congressional investigation, precautions must
be taken to minimize the likelihood of even the appearance of not
being completely truthful to Congress. Under certain circumstances,
congressional witnesses should consider invoking their Fifth Amendment privilege against
self-incrimination, rather than risk making false statements.
The content of this article is intended to provide a general
guide to the subject matter. Specialist advice should be sought
about your specific circumstances.
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