The director of the Serious Fraud O"ce (SFO) br and the Solicitor General, Edward Garnier QC, br have recently made no secret of the fact that they br consider the criminal justice system to be incapable of br dealing with corporate prosecutions in a way that refflects br commercial realities. The blunt impact of a prosecution br of a company has the impact of damaging innocent br parties including employees, shareholders and creditors. br Garnier cited the cautionary example of the ill-effects br of prosecution caused to Arthur Andersen, eventually br acquitted on charges of obstruction of justice by the US br Supreme Court, many years after the allegations had br destroyed the company. br US prosecutors have a tool at their br disposal, the deferred prosecution br agreement (DPA), which is being br touted as a viable alternative to the br present options of either prosecution br or civil recovery.