Alum Mark P. Schnapp returns to discuss navigating corporate and legal challenges in a tech-driven world
Attorneys Mark P. Schnapp and Joe D. Whitley (fourth and third from the right respectively) spoke to Tandon students about the intersection of the law and tech-driven professions.
Engineers have a general reputation for adhering to high ethical and professional standards, but in both research and industry settings, issues can arise. An individual’s actions may pose compliance and regulatory issues for their employer ... and vice versa.
Alum Mark P. Schnapp (Heights campus, ‘72), an electrical engineering major who ultimately decided to earn his law degree, returned to NYU Tandon to discuss that and related topics.
Schnapp, who has more than four decades of litigation and trial experience and now makes his home base in Florida, partnered with fellow attorney Joe D. Whitley, renowned for his high-level roles with the U.S. Department of Justice and Department of Homeland Security, to present “Navigating Corporate and Legal Challenges in a Tech-Driven World: Compliance, Enforcement, and Emerging Risks.”
Their talk touched upon the importance of corporate compliance programs; the pitfalls of running afoul of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act in an age of opaque third-party partnerships; the need for extreme care in submitting invoices and contracts in light of a stringent False Claims Act; how export controls affect the supply chain; the need to adhere to environmental regulations such as the Clean Water Act; and protections against cybercriminals. The discussion even roamed to money laundering, which, as they explained, was not usually the dramatic operation depicted in popular culture but simply the (decidedly uncinematic) result of poor accounting practices.
The pair cautioned their audience of aspiring engineers: chances are good that once out in the work world, they could one day be faced with a decision. If they witness illicit activity — whether purposeful or inadvertent — should they become a whistleblower? Just quit? Consult a lawyer for advice?
The knowledge Schnapp and Whitley imparted may not be pleasant to contemplate, but it’s essential for anyone entering a tech-driven profession to be aware of. And if, like Schnapp, students wanted to leverage their engineering degrees to make an impact in another capacity entirely, the pair had a piece of advice: in a rapidly evolving regulatory landscape, tech companies all need knowledgeable, ethical compliance officers.
