Goldman Sachs: Just Pay the Fine With No Admission of Guilt, No Admission of Wrongdoing

The new chair of the SEC, Mary Jo White, recently indicated that in some cases of prosecution, there should be an admission of guilt.  If a bank is guilty of fraud, it should be called guilty by everyone whether the bank agrees or not.  We are not holding our breath for admissions of guilt as these remain at the discretion of someone else whereas admission should be part of the law for any guilty party.

No admission of guilt.  No denial.  No justice.
Commentary:  White says SEC shouldn't let crooks just walk away.
By Al Lewis - MarketWatch

“Public accountability in particular kinds of cases can be quite important,” White said. “And if you don’t get them, you litigate them.”

SEC to seek admissions in fraud cases

Securities and Exchange Commission Chairman Mary Jo White says the regulator plans to require some defendants to admit to wrongdoing as a condition of settling securities fraud charges.

Tough talk. But hasn’t the SEC already dispensed with most cases related to the 2008 financial crisis? Many of Wall Street’s giants — including Bank of America Corp. BAC -2.64% , Goldman Sachs Group Inc. GS -1.06%   and J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. JPM -0.82%  — have settled civil fraud charges without admitting or denying guilt. And this rush to closure has made a mockery of justice. 

Anyone who settles without admitting guilt can later claim it did so only to avoid the legal bills. And in this light, some may view the SEC as a government extortionist, shaking down companies with accusations that never can be tested in court. 

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