Cal. PEN § 1398
This is the official text of Cal. PEN § 1398, part of California’s Penal Code — defines crimes and sets criminal procedure in California.
Not legal advice. This page reproduces the official text of a government statute for reference only. Laws change, and how a statute applies depends on your specific facts. For advice about your situation, consult a licensed attorney in your state.
Official statutory text
(a) In addition to any other penalty or fine provided by law, if a corporation is convicted of a misdemeanor or felony offense, the court may order the corporation to pay an additional fine, known as the corporate white collar criminal enhancement, pursuant to this section.
(b) The court may determine the amount of the fine. The fine shall not exceed the greater of either of the following:
(1) Two times the value of the taking or loss, whichever is greater, if the offense resulted in the taking of, or loss to, another person’s or entity’s money, labor, or real or personal property.
(2) Twenty-five million dollars ($25,000,000).
(c) In determining the amount of the fine under this section, the court shall consider all of the following:
(1) The nature and seriousness of the offense.
(2) The number of offenses committed.
(3) The persistence of the criminal conduct.
(4) The length of time over which the criminal conduct occurred.
(5) The willfulness of the corporation’s criminal conduct.
(6) The corporation’s assets, liabilities, and net worth, if available to the court.
(d) If, after a hearing in open court, the judge exercises their discretion in assessing the fine, they shall state the reason on the record.
(e) Any moneys collected pursuant to this section shall be deposited into the California Crime Victims Fund established under Section 13839.
(f) For purposes of this section, a “corporation” means a firm, association, organization, partnership, business trust, company, corporation, limited liability company, public entity, or any other legal entity.
(b) The court may determine the amount of the fine. The fine shall not exceed the greater of either of the following:
(1) Two times the value of the taking or loss, whichever is greater, if the offense resulted in the taking of, or loss to, another person’s or entity’s money, labor, or real or personal property.
(2) Twenty-five million dollars ($25,000,000).
(c) In determining the amount of the fine under this section, the court shall consider all of the following:
(1) The nature and seriousness of the offense.
(2) The number of offenses committed.
(3) The persistence of the criminal conduct.
(4) The length of time over which the criminal conduct occurred.
(5) The willfulness of the corporation’s criminal conduct.
(6) The corporation’s assets, liabilities, and net worth, if available to the court.
(d) If, after a hearing in open court, the judge exercises their discretion in assessing the fine, they shall state the reason on the record.
(e) Any moneys collected pursuant to this section shall be deposited into the California Crime Victims Fund established under Section 13839.
(f) For purposes of this section, a “corporation” means a firm, association, organization, partnership, business trust, company, corporation, limited liability company, public entity, or any other legal entity.
Status: in_force · Read it on the official government site
Dealing with a criminal defense matter in California?
See all California Criminal Defense lawyers
About this page: Statute text is reproduced from official government publishers via the
Open US Law dataset
(Vaquill AI, snapshot v2026.08, CC BY 4.0). Primary legislative text like this is public domain under the government-edicts doctrine
(Georgia v. Public.Resource.Org, 2020). We link every section back to its official source so you can verify it independently.