Why I did not go to jail (2014)
This is one of the more important bits to be periodically reposted on HN. Compliance with the law is not 'optional', and if you cross that line there is a fair chance that it will come back to bite you. Regulated industries, stock transactions (and options, as in this bit of startup history) all have their peculiarities and you need to realize that not all of these end up with the proverbial slap on the wrist if you end up doing them in a way that is wrong.<p>Then there is outright negligence, which would make things even worse. If compliance is an ugly word to you then please go and do something that just involves you and that does not expose others (shareholders, employees, customers) to the risks that you apparently are comfortable with but that they are probably not comfortable with.<p>As much as I applaud the writer for covering for Michelle and putting her actions in the best light: a 3.5 month non-suspended sentence is not something that is handed out lightly for a white collar issue. Both Michelle and the other execs at that company profited from doing this at the expense of the other shareholders, but that's not what landed her in jail. Keep in mind that nobody died, and that the difference between the worst and the best date within a month to backdate those options to could not have been so massive that we're looking at huge differences in pay-out compared to the total value. It is the principle that matters, ask Martha Stewart (a billionaire) how her attempt to save $45K ended up to see why this is so, and check out what mobster Al Capone got convicted of. Also note that even asking for outside counsel may not be enough to get you off the hook, and that no matter what your accountant tells you in the end you are responsible for your actions.<p>Don't go to jail. If your boss tells you to do something that might land you in jail: resign.<p>And take legal compliance serious, as serious as though your company and your future depend on it, one day they just may.