While corporations and their officers/employees have long been the focus of federal grand jury investigations, Pennsylvania prosecutors targeting corporate crime using the powers of a county/multicounty investigating grand jury is of more recent origin. Because this effort appears to be picking up steam in Pennsylvania, below are five tips for representing corporations during Pennsylvania grand jury investigations.

  • Determine if the corporation is a target of the grand jury’s investigation.

Oftentimes, corporations that receive state grand jury subpoenas are not targets of the grand jury’s investigation, but merely are in possession of records that are necessary to further the grand jury’s investigation of others. But there are those situations in which the opposite is true. Under U.S. Justice Department policy, federal prosecutors are encouraged to notify grand jury targets of their status prior to the issuance of an Indictment to give them an opportunity to testify before the grand jury. This is not the case in Pennsylvania. However, in my experience, Pennsylvania prosecutors are typically willing to speak with corporate counsel about the corporation’s status, and counsel is encouraged to do so before expending large sums in defending against the subpoena, assuming that important privileges are not at issue.

  • Retain separate counsel for corporate officers/employees.