![]() In white collar cases, the repetitional damage from even the mere allegation of a criminal act by a business or its executives can be devastating to professional futures. Nevermind that even the allegations, let alone the actual truth of what happened at Abacus, did not have anything to do with the mortgage lending crisis from 2008. In front of the cameras with the microphones on, the prosecutors did not simply state the charges that they were alleging, but instead used their platform to make sweeping pronouncements about the excesses of the financial system. For example, instead of simply filing the requisite charging documents with the court, District Attorney Vance announced the indictment of Abacus and several of its top executives in a large press conference for the media. Though politics is not supposed to play a role in our justice system, we know that it does. The Politics Involved in a White-Collar Case that are very revealing.įor me as a white-collar defense attorney, the film illuminates several things I see all the time in prosecutions of businesses and individuals accused of business crimes. There are also extended interviews with the attorneys on both sides, including Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus Vance, Jr. Some of the best scenes from the film are around the dinner table when the father, Thomas Sung, who started the bank, talks trial strategy with his wife Hwei Lin Sung, and their three daughters Jill, Vera, and Chanterelle Sung, all of whom work for the bank in some capacity. The film does a great job showing what it’s like to be under the great weight of the State when it makes false allegations against you. The documentary has incredible access to the family in real time as the trial takes place. Yet this tight-knit, courageous family fights back to set the record straight for themselves and the Chinese-American community. As the film’s title indicates, unlike the high-powered big banks of Wall Street, this community bank appears to be “small enough to jail” for its purported role in the 2008 financial crisis. The film centers on how the Sungs, a Chinese-American immigrant family who runs a storied community bank in New York’s Chinatown (Abacus Federal Savings Bank), became the target of an overzealous prosecution by the Manhattan District Attorney’s Office. It is high in suspense, surprisingly funny, and has a certain charm to it despite the outrageous legal case that it depicts. ![]() If there’s one film from this year’s Oscars nominations that you should watch, it’s the documentary film Abacus: Small Enough to Jail.
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