Arthur Andersen’s conviction for obstruction of justice was overturned in 2005. The United States Supreme Court unanimously reversed the accounting firm’s conviction in Arthur Andersen LLP v. United States, a case arising from the Enron scandal.
Andersen had been convicted in 2002 after employees destroyed Enron-related documents while the Securities and Exchange Commission was preparing to investigate the company. The government argued that the destruction obstructed justice. Andersen appealed, but the Fifth Circuit upheld the conviction before the Supreme Court agreed to hear the case.
On May 31, 2005, Chief Justice William Rehnquist’s opinion held that the trial judge’s jury instructions were too vague. They did not adequately require proof that Andersen acted with consciousness of wrongdoing or understood that its conduct was linked to an official proceeding. The reversal did not restore the firm: its reputation and business had already collapsed, and it had surrendered its ability to audit public companies. The case is therefore often remembered as a legal victory that came too late to save the partnership.