Blog Posts: International Compliance
Authorities Launch FCPA Probe of Murdoch Holdings
An international probe of News Corporation and its leaders demonstrates the broad scope of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act. The FCPA investigation follows more than 100 civil claims that threaten to topple the Rupert Murdoch media empire.
2012 London Games Spark UK Bribery Concerns
When nearly two million tourists and sports fans overtake London this summer for the Olympic Games, many of them will wine and dine at corporate hospitality suites. Some will even receive coveted tickets to sold-out events from vendors and business partners. The companies that provide all that hospitality must learn the ins and outs of the UK Bribery Act, which criminalizes gifts that are given with the intention of improperly influencing the recipient. If the British government determines that a company's Olympics hospitality package violated the Act, UK authorities can impose virtually unlimited fines and jail individual offenders for up to ten years.
2011 Saw Aggressive FCPA Enforcement by Feds
The United States Justice Department (DOJ) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) sent a loud, clear message to U.S. companies in 2011: Get your ethical house in order or face enforcement action under the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act.
Greased Lightning Rods: Corporate FCPA Policies Draw New Scrutiny
The Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) prohibits payments or offers to foreign officials in order to obtain, direct or retain business. However, the FCPA allows so-called “grease payments” to foreign officials or agencies that help expedite routine processing and paperwork. A recent review of Fortune 500 companies’ public codes of conduct found that 68 of them allow these grease payments – usually requiring prior approval – while 48 prohibit or strongly discourage them. Fully 373 fail to mention them altogether, suggesting that such payments are at least tacitly allowed.
Corporate Fraud Is on the Rise — and So Is Fraud Reporting
According to a recent survey released by The Network, Inc., fraud-related incidents in the workplace are on the rise: The total number of reported fraud-related incidents increased by 18.3% compared to the second quarter of 2010.
Anti-Corruption: Think Globally, (Clean Up Your) Act Locally
On the corrupt-practices front, the buzz in recent weeks has been all about News Corp's phone-hacking and police-bribery scandal. It has been alleged that journalists for News of the World, a British tabloid owned by News Corp, paid bribes of up to £30,000 (nearly $50,000 in U.S. dollars) to individual police officers in London in exchange for confidential information about celebrities, members of the Royal Family and others.
Do the Right Thing: Self-Report Potential FCPA Violations
A recent bribery case is a reminder of the importance of robust anti-corruption and FCPA compliance training to U.S. companies with foreign subsidiaries.
It’s Official: “Foreign Officials” under the FCPA May Include Officers of Foreign State-Owned Utilities
A federal judge in Los Angeles has ruled that the definition of “foreign officials” in the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) could extend to officers of state-owned utilities (United States v. Lindsey Manufacturing Co.). The ruling clears the path to a criminal trial.
FCPA Enforcement: "Stronger Than It's Ever Been"
In a number of recent speeches, the head of the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), Lanny Breuer, has described the DOJ's focus on FCPA enforcement as "stronger than it's ever been — and getting stronger." In 2010, the total number of FCPA enforcement actions rose significantly over the number in the previous year — from 45 actions against companies and individuals in 2009 to 76 actions in 2010.
