By Jillian Gutstein C’16
On March 4, Penn Law and Wharton co-hosted Preet Bharara, U.S. Attorney for the Southern District of New York, to present a guest lecture in Huntsman Hall to students, faculty, and the Penn community. The lecture, followed by a Q&A session with audience members, emphasized the importance of business ethics, and following the law. Bharara recalled how he first became interested in his field during his sophomore year of college, in which he “realized the importance of integrity of financial markets on black Monday.”
Bharara dedicated much of his address talking about his experience prosecuting businesses engaged in illegal activities. He emphasized the importance of corporate culture, and hiring good employees. “If people who saw something [illegal] decided to stand up and report it earlier, a lot of people could be spared a lot of pain, and a lot of people would have a lot more money in their pockets or the bank,” said Bharara. He also observed that corporate culture is set at the top, and that integrity is the most important characteristic of a leader.
Prior to his public lecture, Bharara participated in two roundtable discussions with Law students and with Wharton students.
“Have confidence in your own view about what you think is fishy or not fishy”- Preet Bharara, US Attorney, Southern District of NY #pennlaw
— Jillian Gutstein (@JillianGutstei1) March 4, 2014
“Prosecutors should be judged not only by the cases they bring, but by the cases they are restrained enough not to bring”Bharara #pennlaw
— Jillian Gutstein (@JillianGutstei1) March 4, 2014
“Nobody is above the law, and the rule of law applies to everyone, no matter how much money you have…” Bharara #pennlaw
— Jillian Gutstein (@JillianGutstei1) March 4, 2014
“You can decide: if you only want to work in places with good reputations, firms are going have better reputations.” Bharara #pennlaw
— Jillian Gutstein (@JillianGutstei1) March 4, 2014
“In this economy the opportunities for corrupt cultures to take root to thrive and to persist…keeps happening. That troubles me” #pennlaw
— Jillian Gutstein (@JillianGutstei1) March 4, 2014
“It’s hard to convict someone[…] you need a unanimous jury[…]you can’t get 12 people to agree on ordering pizza” Bharara #pennlaw
— Jillian Gutstein (@JillianGutstei1) March 4, 2014
“It takes a lot to be a good prosecutor. It’s not just what you learn in a statutes book” Bharara #pennlaw
— Jillian Gutstein (@JillianGutstei1) March 4, 2014
“Every case is equal in [my office’s] eyes” Bharara #pennlaw
— Jillian Gutstein (@JillianGutstei1) March 4, 2014
“The rule of law matters, and it matters whether the victim is a non English speaking person, or a movie star” -Bharara #pennlaw
— Jillian Gutstein (@JillianGutstei1) March 4, 2014
“You have to create a [work] environment in which people are not too scared to fail a little” Bharara on preventing corporate crime #pennlaw
— Jillian Gutstein (@JillianGutstei1) March 4, 2014