Marc Weinstein Discusses Early Application of Federal Sentencing Guideline Reforms With Law360

Marc Weinstein discussed whether courts should consider using forthcoming federal sentencing guideline amendments before they officially take effect on Nov. 1 with Law360.

The article examines how some white-collar defense attorneys are successfully arguing that defendants should benefit now from sentencing reforms adopted by the U.S. Sentencing Commission in April. Among other changes, the amendments call for adjusting a 16-tier chart used to calculate penalties for financial crimes based on loss amounts to account for inflation.

Weinstein described the approach as a “great idea” with little downside, highlighting how upcoming guideline changes may influence sentencing decisions even before their formal enactment.

“Even if the courts were not to apply the specific new guidelines, you'd hope they'd take into account that if the person were sentenced several months from now, the guidelines would be different,” Weinstein said.

Read the article.