In a very short paragraph, answer the two questions put forth: Why did these employees lie, and what do you believe should be their penalty for these lies?

I felt the pressure. That's what some of the employees of the now-defunct law firm of Dewey & LeBoeuf LLP indicated when they helped to overstate revenue and use accounting tricks to hide losses and cover up cash shortages. These employees worked for the former finance director and former chief financial officer (CFO) of the firm. Here are some of their comments:

• I was instructed by the CFO to create invoices, knowing they would not be sent to clients. When I created these invoices, I knew that it was inappropriate.
• I intentionally gave the auditors incorrect information in the course of the audit.

What happened here is that a small group of lower-level employees over a period of years carried out the instructions of their bosses. Their bosses, however, seemed to have no concern as evidenced by various e-mails with one another in which they referred to their financial manipulations as accounting tricks, cooking the books, and fake income.

Source: Ashby Jones, Guilty Pleas of Dewey Staff Detail the Alleged Fraud, Wall Street Journal (March 28, 2014).

Why did these employees lie, and what do you believe should be their penalty for these lies?