Book excerpt: The first inside look at how the elite white-collar crime defense bar goes about its work. Mann's book reveals that these lawyers see their main task as controlling information about their clients, especially the flow of harmful information to government investigators. As both lawyer and sociologist, Mann was able to gain access only rarely available to scholars. His book raises important ethical and policy questions for the bar and for the administration of justice. People who think our criminal system is too soft on muggers and petty thieves can learn from Mann's book how soft things get when business-class thieves are in trouble. -- Michael Kinsley, Fortune