White-collar attorneys

Abstract

The research topic of attorneys at work for white-collar offenders is traditionally associated with lawyers who help defendants while they are in the criminal justice system. During police investigation, court prosecution, and incarceration, an attorney can help the client in a subjective defense to limit the sanctions imposed on the client from the criminal justice system. The focus of research is then whether white-collar offenders are less likely to be incarcerated and receive shorter sentences compared to other offenders, whether the special sensitivity hypothesis or the special resilience hypothesis applies to white-collar offenders, and other research topics related to law enforcement toward this group of offenders. In any event, standards of professional conduct indicate that lawyers are expected to zealously assert the client’s position.