The hidden costs of legal disruption to a business: How rapid response matters when key staff face arrest
Photo by Andrea Piacquadio
The arrest of key staff in your company can (depending on the specific situation) potentially cause significant legal disruptions that lead to costly claims, business interruption and reputational damage.
It could also cause decreased employee morale and productivity – and increased scrutiny from regulators.
While most companies prepare for financial risks like market downturns or data breaches, few plan for legal detentions that could potentially disrupt operations.
So, when a key staff member faces arrest, activating a rapid and coordinated response is essential.
Gathering facts, convening a crisis management team and taking initial actions
First, you should collect all of the verified facts concerning the situation.
Then, assemble key personnel, such as executives, HR teams, and your legal team (if you have one), to coordinate your response.
Your actions will depend on what your key member of staff has been accused of and how that affects your operations and could potentially affect your company’s reputation.
If the crime of the accused is directly related to your company (such as committing internal fraud, for example), you will need to be extra cautious of how you approach the situation – compared to a crime that the person commits outside of the workplace.
You may need to alter internal operations accordingly and prepare a statement for the press.
And if you know for sure that the individual is innocent (though, typically, you won’t know that until the legal system has taken the correct course of action), you may wish to take actions to help them in their time of need.
For example, you may wish to work with a bail bond company, such as OnCall Bail Bonds, to post bail quickly and correctly.
Seeking expert legal counsel
Whatever the situation, it is important that you consult professional legal counsel to ensure you thoroughly understand the potential legal implications to your company and ensure all the actions you take comply with employment law and do not prejudice the police investigation.
Even if you have a legal team, it may be worth consulting a lawyer who has specialist knowledge and experience concerning the exact crime your member of staff has been accused of.
A legal professional can help you take the right steps for your organisation. They may also be able to assist the accused, if that is an action that you want to take.
Assessing the impact
If the arrest of the individual directly affects your business’s operations, you will need to take swift action.
For instance, you could be without a member of staff who performed a key operation. And you may not have anyone else in the company who can take over that role sufficiently. In such a case, you would need to rapidly hire a replacement.
It would probably be best to outsource a professional or use a temp agency, as during this early stage, you won’t know whether the accused will return to their role at some point.
Assess the impact of the individual’s arrest carefully, in terms of how it will affect your business’s operations, to come up with the appropriate actions you’ll need to take.
Prioritising confidentiality
To reduce potential reputational harm to your company, limit knowledge of the situation (both internally and externally) as much as possible.
You should also prioritise confidentiality for the accused’s sake, of course. After all, you will want to ensure that their right to a fair legal process is upheld – and avoid gossip among your workers.
Determining the accused’s work status
In consultation with legal and HR departments, you may need to decide whether the accused member of staff needs to be suspended.
Suspension should not be a knee-jerk reaction. It should be based on reasonable grounds, such as their risk to your business and other staff.
If you do suspend the member of staff before the crime has been proven, ensure they are on full pay (pending investigation).