[rayiner]

Civil fraud versus criminal fraud is very fuzzy. it often comes down to what you think you can prove about fraudulent intent. I gave the sandwich example because you can create “reasonable doubt” by saying the mistake was due to bad QA, rather than fraudulent intent. The fact that the sandwiches are shorter, by itself, does not prove fraudulent intent.

The mortgages are even harder. The banks are accused of lying about whether borrowers could pay. The fact they couldn’t pay doesn’t prove that. The fact that the banks ignored warning signs doesn’t prove that. The fact they knew about underwriting failures doesn’t prove that. Not beyond a reasonable doubt.

[kbenson]

Thanks, that makes sense. It's less of a it broke these specific laws" and more "can you prove intent" (IIUC).