Document ID: ./input/supremecourt_opinions/opinions/14pdf/13-7451_m64o.pdf
Page Number: 14.0

Cite as:  574 U. S. ____ (2015) 

11 

Opinion of GINSBURG, J. 

dence of every kind.  Congress placed §1519 (and its com-
panion provision §1520) at  the end of the  chapter, follow-
ing  immediately  after  the  pre-existing  §1516,  §1517,  and 
§1518, each of them prohibiting obstructive acts in specific 
contexts.  See §1516 (audits of recipients of federal funds);
§1517  (federal  examinations  of  financial  institutions);
§1518  (criminal  investigations  of  federal  health  care  of-
fenses).  See also S. Rep. No. 107–146, at 7 (observing that 
§1517  and  §1518  “apply  to  obstruction  in  certain  limited 
types of cases, such as bankruptcy fraud, examinations of 
financial institutions, and healthcare fraud”).

But Congress did not direct codification of the Sarbanes-
Oxley Act’s other additions to Chapter 73 adjacent to these 
specialized  provisions.  Instead,  Congress  directed  place-
ment  of  those  additions  within  or  alongside  retained  pro-
visions  that  address  obstructive  acts  relating  broadly  to
official proceedings and criminal trials:  Section 806, “Civil 
Action  to  protect  against  retaliation  in  fraud  cases,”  was 
codified  as  §1514A  and  inserted  between  the  pre-existing 
§1514,  which  addresses  civil  actions  to  restrain  harass-
ment  of  victims  and  witnesses  in  criminal  cases,  and 
§1515,  which  defines  terms  used  in  §1512  and  §1513.
Section  1102,  “Tampering  with  a  record  or  otherwise 
impeding  an  official  proceeding,”  was  codified  as  §1512(c) 
and  inserted  within  the  pre-existing  §1512,  which  ad-
dresses tampering with a victim, witness, or informant to 
impede any official proceeding.  Section 1107, “Retaliation 
against informants,” was codified as §1513(e) and inserted 
within the pre-existing §1513, which addresses retaliation 
against  a  victim,  witness,  or  informant  in  any  official 
proceeding.  Congress  thus  ranked  §1519,  not  among  the 
broad  proscriptions,  but  together  with  specialized  provi-
sions  expressly  aimed  at  corporate  fraud  and  financial 
audits.  This  placement  accords  with  the  view  that  Con-
gress’  conception  of  §1519’s  coverage  was  considerably